Settling Soldiers’ Stomachs and Bringing Robots Home – 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:

UK Border Force to Trial Biometric Border Processing

The United Kingdom’s Border Force will begin trialing smart border systems based on facial recognition this year. If they are successful, authorities will begin a procurement process for the hardware needed for a wider rollout. Speaking to the Times, Border Force Director General Phil Douglas said he was impressed with a smart border screening system he encountered when traveling to Australia, which used his smartphone to scan the chip in his passport, and allowed him to enter the country without having to present the physical document.

Saudi Government Orders Expats to Register Families’ Biometric Data

The Saudi Arabian General Directorate of Passports (GDP) has issued a directive requiring all expatriates to register the fingerprints of their family members aged six and over. The kingdom has a robust expatriate community, with foreign workers making significant contributions to its economy. Government authorities say the new requirement is meant to enhance the security of individuals visiting or working in Saudi Arabia, and that biometric registration will be essential for accessing government services.

Draft Legislation Pushes for Police Biometrics in Monaco

Proposed legislation in Monaco may open the door to the implementation of biometric surveillance tools. Draft bill 1087, submitted to the National Council toward the end of last month, describes the need for tools that can “help to detect and identify wanted persons remotely, using images from video protection systems deployed throughout the Principality, and when necessary, also images captured by video surveillance systems in places accessible to the public.” The aim, the bill explains, is to automate tasks that are already carried out manually by the Direction de la Sûreté Publique, the principality’s main law enforcement agency.

Korea’s Marine Corps Teams With Hyundai Mobis to Fight Nausea

Hyundai Mobis, a South Korean automotive parts maker, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the country’s Marine Corps to work together on reducing motion sickness for marines in amphibious assault vehicles. The collaboration will build on Hyundai Mobis’s Smart Cabin technology, which is designed to assess biometric signals including heart rate, posture, and even brainwaves of vehicle drivers in order to detect things like drowsiness and stress. This will be the first time that Hyundai Mobis’s technology is applied beyond conventional vehicles.

India’s BLS Wins European Contracts

BLS International Services Ltd., an India-based provider of outsourcing services, has renewed a visa processing contract with the government of Spain, extending its efforts to national visas. The contract also entails the provision of value-added services including those the company describes as “mobile biometrics”. BLS International has also signed a global visa outsourcing contract with Slovakia, covering 18 countries in the European Union’s Schengen zone.

Project NOLA Head Sees Expansion of Facial Recognition Use

The head of Project NOLA, a non-profit that works closely with the New Orleans Police Department, says there are plans to extend the use of facial recognition as a crime-fighting tool this year. Reports last year suggested that the renewed use of facial recognition had delivered a modest benefit to the NOPD, resulting in one arrest as of November 1, 2023. However, speaking to a local news outlet, Project NOLA Executive Director Bryan Lagarde insisted that the technology had helped to disrupt crime and gang activity in the city. While the NOPD has been using technology provided by IDEMIA, Project NOLA has its own network of privately owned security cameras.

Iowa to Require ID.me Registration for Unemployment Claims

Iowans will soon need to use ID.me’s services to verify their identity when filing unemployment claims. ID.me’s online IDV solution, which is based on facial recognition, is available as an option in the state as of January 2, 2024; and Iowa Workforce Development (IWD) says ID.me’s services will be required for all claimants as of April 1, 2024. Those who don’t want to use the biometric IDV system will have the option of speaking with an ID.me “Video Chat Agent”, or proceeding in person to an American Job Center to get assistance from trained staff.

Yoti Announces £20M Funding Round

Yoti has completed a £20 million funding round, led by HSBC, which contributed £12.5 million in debt funding. The remaining funding, in the form of £7.5 million convertible debt funding, came from existing shareholders. Yoti says it has now raised £166 million to date. It has also accumulated an impressive roster of clients, including Meta, OnlyFans, Sony Playstation, Aldi, The Government of Jersey, and Improvement Service in Scotland, among others. Yoti says that over the four years leading up to March of 2023, its revenues have grown from £101,168 to £6,246,230. As of October of last year, its monthly revenues reached £1,167,735.

BIO-key’s AuthControl Sentry Gets More Deployments

Judiciary Police of Portugal (Polícia Judiciária) has implemented a Virtual Private Network secured by BIO-key’s AuthControl Sentry MFA solution, which landed in its portfolio through the acquisition of Swivel Secure Europe in 2022. The company says this deployment was “sourced through BIO-key’s strategic collaboration with Securnet.” AuthControl Sentry has also been implemented by the retailer Carrefour in Spain, thanks to a partnership between BIO-key’s Swivel Secure Europe subsidiary and Evolutio, a Spanish cloud services provider.

SecuGen Launches First Standalone Card Reader

SecuGen has launched its SecuGen IQ SC1 solution, its first standalone smart card reader without a built-in fingerprint scanner. “Our entire focus has always been providing the products and tools that our reseller partners need to be able to bring the best biometric solutions to their end-user customers,” said SecuGen CEO Won Lee. “With the release of the IQ SCI contact smart card reader, we continue to broaden that product line while supporting our partners.” The device features USB connectivity and boasts certifications including EMV Level 1 (Contact) and PBOC.

Trust Stamp Teams With IIoT Security Specialist

Trust Stamp has teamed up with Scurid, a Tokyo-based firm specializing in device identity for the Industrial Internet of Things. The companies are aiming to combine the latter’s tech with Trust Stamp’s IT2 solution, which is designed to transform face biometrics into an irreversible identity token. Essentially, the companies want to combine biometric identity management with device identity for a more secure IIoT. “This seamless integration forms a scalable, comprehensive solution, eliminating the complexities of traditional authentication and fostering a fluid, intuitive interaction between humans and machines,” they explained in a statement.

LG to Introduce Household Robot at CES 2024

A new robot for the family home from LG features voice and image recognition capabilities. The diminutive bot is designed to motor around on two wheels, and represents LG’s “Zero Labor Home” vision. It can interact with members of the household thanks to natural language processing capabilities. It will be showcased at this month’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

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January 2, 2024 – by Alex Perala