Biometrics gets down to business
For many people, "biometrics" conjures up images of a Big Brotherish surveillance society. But tell them they could save a few precious seconds at the supermarket checkout just by waving their fingers over a scanner, and they will sign up in their millions.
After more than a decade of hype, biometrics-the use of body measurements such as eye scans or fingerprints to determine or verify identity-is finally taking off. And all it took to convince the public of its merits, it seems, was the promise of shorter queues or a few extra loyalty points. In the past year there has been an explosion in the commercial use of biometrics, utterly eclipsing the uphill efforts of various governments to introduce identity cards and passports that store electronic signatures derived from facial images, fingerprints or eye scans.
For a long time it was assumed that biometrics would be a governmentled technology, says Sapna Capoor, an analyst at Frost and Sullivan, a consultancy. But in the past couple of years this has quietly started to change. "There has been a group of biometrics vendors who have shifted away from working with governments and focused instead on commercial products," she says.
One reason for this shift is that the technology has matured, says Michael Thieme of the International Biometric Group, an industry body based in New York. In the past many biometric technologies would not work on a broad section of the population. Some types of biometric scanners worked well in the laboratory, but ran into problems in realworld environments when scanning children, old people, people with small or sweaty hands, bricklayers or subjects with eye conditions. But the technology has since improved and is considerably more inclusive, says Mr Thieme.
New regulations in the financial sector have also boosted adoption, says Mark Upson, the boss of BioPassword in Issaquah, Washington, whose company has more than 400,000 onlinebanking users enrolled in its keystrokedynamics security scheme. In a bid to tighten security and reduce online fraud and identity theft in online banking, America’s Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council is pressing banks to adopt "two factor" authentication, says Mr Upson. Previously, account holders had to provide only a single means of identity verification, such as an account number and password. Twofactor systems rely not just on something you know, however, but also on something you have, such as an electronic token, or something you are, in the form of a biometric.
Those in the industry believe the banking and retail approaches to biometrics-one of which puts security above convenience, the other convenience above security-will eventually converge, opening up new applications in the process.
As governments grapple with schemes to introduce biometric passports and identity cards, companies are pushing ahead with biometrics on their own. And what is perhaps even more surprising than the commercial adoption of the technology is the speed and willingness with which the public is embracing it. This is unlikely to be because people trust big companies more than they trust governments. Instead, it is because the commercial applications of biometrics tend to place a greater emphasis on the benefits to the customer, so providing incentives for adoption. As governments start to foist biometrics on their citizens, they would do well to bear this in mind.
A recent survey found that air passengers would welcome biometric checkin procedures at airports if it meant less queuing. People will embrace biometrics, it seems, provided there’s something in it for them.
surveillance
n.监视，监督
［真题例句］ A boom in neighborhood surveillance cameras will, for example, cause problems in 2010, while the arrival of synthetic lifelike robots will mean people may not be able to distinguish between their human friends and the droids.［2001年翻译］
［例句精译］ 比如，住宅区附近监视器的猛增在2010年会引发问题；逼真的机器人将意味着人们可能无法区分人类朋友和仿真机器人。
identity
n.同一性，身份，一致，特性，恒等式
［真题例句］ The Europe that is now forming cannot be anything other than its peoples, their cultures and national identities.［2005年翻译］
［例句精译］ 现今的欧洲只能是不同的民族、文化和传统所形成的欧洲。
explosion
n.爆炸，爆发
［真题例句］ (75) Additional social stresses may also occur because of the population explosion or problems arising from mass migration movements- themselves made relatively easy nowadays by modern means of transport.［2000年翻译］
［例句精译］ （75）由于人口的猛增或人口大量流动（现代交通工具使这种流动相对容易）造成的种种问题也会对社会造成新的压力。
signature
n.签名，署名，签字
enroll(l)
v.招收，登记，入学
［真题例句］ The journalist advocating participatory democracy in all phases of life, whose own children are enrolled in private schools.［2000年阅读5］
［例句精译］ 倡导终生参与民主制的新闻记者却把自己的子女送进私立学校。
incentive
n.①动机；②激励，鼓励；a.激励的
［真题例句］ A bill by Democratic Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia, which would offer financial incentives (n.②) for private industry, is a promising start.［2005年阅读2］
［例句精译］ 西弗吉尼亚议员Robert Byrd提出议案，用资金去推动私有企业进行环保，这是一个良好的开端。作者: abcsgs2009 时间: 08-8-4 19:37
提示: 作者被禁止或删除 内容自动屏蔽作者: kysos 时间: 08-8-4 21:09
8。5%
