Biometrics Detect Putin’s Doppelgangers – Identity News Digest

Welcome to FindBiometrics’ digest of identity industry news. Here’s what you need to know about the world of digital identity and biometrics today:

Biometric Gun Safes Recalled, After Numerous Complaints and a Fatality

In consultation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Illinois-based Fortress Safe has announced the recall of about 61,000 of its biometric gun safes due to a glitch: In some cases, users may believe they have enabled the safe’s biometric lock, when in fact it’s in a “default to open mode” allowing anyone to access it. There have been 39 such incidents reported, with one leading to a lawsuit alleging that a 12-year-old boy died by a firearm accessed from one of the safes. It’s a particularly worrying development given the growing deployment of biometric gun safes in some American schools.

Japanese AI Experts Detect Putin Body Doubles

AI experts consulted in a report for the major Japanese network TBS said there is evidence that Russian President Vladimir Putin has been using multiple doppelgangers in public appearances. Specialists in facial, voice, and gait recognition weighed in, applying their technologies to video footage. For example, one gait analysis conducted by the Tokyo-based firm Asilla found a 94 percent match between the Putin shown meeting Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, whereas the match dropped to only 75 percent when compared to a video of Putin visiting the war-torn city of Mariupol.

UK Police Crack Down On Fugitives, Shoplifters

Police in the United Kingdom’s city of Southend have announced plans to deploy live facial recognition technology on October 24-25 in an effort to detect and catch wanted criminals. In so doing, the Essex Police explained that they are looking to specifically match people against a watch list, and that individuals who aren’t on the watch list will have their images “immediately and automatically deleted.” The facial recognition technology is being provided by South Wales Police, with the Essex Police adding that not a single wrongful arrest has been made using the tech.

The head of Britain’s biggest police force, Metropolitan Police Commissioner Mark Rowley, says initial results from an effort to use facial recognition to crack down on shoplifting suggest the technology is “game-changing,” adding it “could revolutionize how we investigate and solve crime.” Since the launch of “Project Pegasus” in September, 12 retailers have provided images of 30 of the most prolific offenders to the Met, which found matches for roughly half of the images in its mugshot database. Rowley says that it’s now “clear the majority are career criminals involved in serious crime,” allowing police to focus their investigatory efforts in a more precise way than anticipated.

Major Indian Railway Station to Get Face-Scanning Surveillance

Authorities in the major Indian city of Pune are preparing the deployment of 120 cameras equipped with facial recognition technology at the Pune Railway Station. It could be a particularly impactful deployment, with 120 trains carrying more than half a million passengers traveling through the station on a daily basis, according to the Pune Times Mirror. The planned facial recognition system will store subject data for a period of 30 days.

FaceTec, FPC Issue Q3 Updates

FaceTec has issued its corporate update for Q3 of 2023, once again demonstrating a remarkable pace of growth. The private company says its revenues were up 50 percent year-over-year—a particularly noteworthy achievement given that revenues were already up 96 percent year-over-year in Q3 of 2022. Use of its 3D Liveness Check system, meanwhile, has only accelerated, clocking a year-over-year uptick of 172 percent in the latest quarter. “Our Q3 results reflect the growing need for effective Liveness-proven biometric cybersecurity,” said CEO Kevin Alan Tussy.

Fingerprint Cards has announced its results for the third quarter, along with some important business changes. Revenues were up 29 percent year-over-year, coming in at SEK 184.8 million, and gross profit increased 35 percent. But the company saw a negative EBITDA of SEK -40.4 million, compared to SEK -38.1 million in Q3 of 2022; and its overall loss went from SEK -51 million a year ago to SEK -73.8 million in the latest quarter. CEO Adam Philpott, who joined the company near the end of summer, explained that FPC will now respond to “challenging market conditions” with “restructuring measures” that are expected to save the company about SEK 204 million per year. He also announced that all of Fingerprint Cards’ diverse technologies would be grouped under a “cohesive, extensible platform” called the “Fingerprints Biometrics Platform”.

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October 19, 2023 – by Alex Perala