Biometrics :: Biotechnology Science Essays

Biometrics Biometrics is a new term for many, but it is not a new idea. The idea of Biometrics first began with finger print analysis. Today, Biometrics has expanded to not only your fingerprints but also ear, face, facial thermogram, hand vein, hand geometry, iris, retina, signature and voice analysis. Technology has gone from science fiction to reality. This paper will include a brief description of each of the types of Biometrics and who is using them. The answer to "Who is using Biometrics?" may surprise you. In the United States over 150 schools are using a Biometrics system. This system allows the children to pay for cafeteria lunches. Over 200,000 students are participating in the Fingerprint Biometric system. The average system will cost any where from $4,000 to $10,000 to implement. How does it save you money? The answer is simply, you no longer need cashiers. All you need is a monitor. There is no longer cash to be accounted for, and children no longer have to bring money to school. Parents don’t have to worry how the money is being spent. The Fingerprint system is easy and results in quicker lines. Some major concerns for the parents are; 1.) How does the Fingerprint technology work? 2.) Can this technology be used in the police department? 3.) What about privacy issues? The technology being used in our school cannot be used in law enforcement. The fingerprint of your index finger is scanned, then transformed into a twenty-seven point grid, and a mathematical algorithm is the result. This is what the computer matches upnot your actual fingerprint. Ear Prints have had success for the Police in the United Kingdom. They have been using this technology to find missing persons and to identify unknown bodies. Ear prints are generally accepted as being unique, still it is hard to get a conviction if an ear print was left at the seen of a crime. Even though each ear is unique with its contour and lines; it has not been proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the ear print itself left behind is unique. There are fears of this new technology, because of its possible misuse and its accuracy. One of the greatest fears is that our justice system will go from innocent until proven guilty to guilty until proven innocent. This technology will bring great benefits until it fails, and then a tremendous amount of harm to even those who benefit from the technology.