10-04-2017, 08:30 PM
Authentication and security have been major issues right from the beginning of the computer age. One of the emerging and efficient keys to security problem is Biometrics-a technology that strives towards identifying the identity of a living person based on biological characteristics. Biometrics possesses many advantages over conventional user authentication processes. Because a biometric is an intrinsic property of some individual they are difficult to duplicate and impossible to share. Examples of automated biometrics include fingerprints, faces, iris and speech. Even though biometric based system is more reliable and secure than conventional authentication methods, it is still possible to hack into a biometric system. There are 8 possible weak links in a generic biometric system. This paper highlights the attacks points on a fingerprint based biometric system and suggestions to alleviate them. Resubmitting of old digitally stored biometrics signals is one of the weakest links. Two techniques are proposed. One method involves hiding messages in the image and works in conjunction with the image compression method (WSQ). Other method involves checking the liveliness of the signal acquired from an intelligent sensor using a challenge/response strategy. Two key issues associated with a biometric system are privacy concern and re-issuance of identity tokens. A new technique has been proposed called cancelable biometrics in which the biometric signals are distorted using well defined transformations. The techniques proposed enhance the security of a biometric system.