Thumbprints Make Security as Easy as Giving the Finger

Michael Lapidus has a spreadsheet full of user identification and password combinations he uses to access different Websites. Any time he wants to access his online banking service, ecommerce site or visit a password-protected newspaper or Website, he would have to open the spreadsheet, and type the information into the Website’s fields.

Then he bought a Microsoft mouse with built-in biometric fingerprint reader. The device stores all the codes and associates them with his fingerprint. Now, to access a site, he types in the Web address, and with the scan of his finger, he is authenticated for secure access to the site.

If it’s a new site he’s visiting, a dialog box will open asking him to create a user ID and password, and scan his finger.

"It just take a second or two to swipe your finger and access a site,” said Lapidus, an Internet entrepreneur and owner of several affiliate marketing sites. “This way, I enter the information once, scan my finger and that’s it. In time saved, it’s unbelievable."

Biometric authentication uses distinct human characteristics, like a fingerprint, iris, voice or face scan or signature, to secure or open a computer, application, folder or file. As computer users become more concerned about online security and identity theft, the ability to access sites securely without having to remember numerous codes or other information makes biometric solutions, especially portable devices, more attractive.

The cost of installing biometrics is falling. At the same time, the use of password protected sites and services is growing. As a result, biometric applications are finding their way to small business and consumer applications. USB flashdrives are one example. The thumb-sized drives are becoming more popular and less expensive, which is driving manufacturers to find new uses for them, said Brian O’Rourke, a senior analyst with In-Stat, a Scottsdale, AZ, research firm. This year, just under 100 million USB flashdrives will be sold worldwide, he said, with the majority being used by businesses. The average cost is around $15 for 256 megabytes, and under $10 for 64 megabytes. Combining biometrics to the application is a likely direction for manufacturers to take the technology, he said.

"It makes sense that a company would try to differentiate themselves with new uses," he said.

Some companies are combining USB flashdrive technology with biometrics. The ClipDrive Bio from Memory Experts International stores data on USB 2.0 flashdrive ranging from 16 megabytes to four gigabytes. The Kanguru Bio Drive will store up to five fingerprints to access from 256 megabytes to 1 gigabyte of data. With both devices, once the user has established his or her fingerprint as the key to the device, data can be unlocked with the scan of the appropriate finger.

The Lexar Jumpdrive Touchguard USB storage device with fingerprint reader is much like Lapidus’ mouse and scanner. The device can store hundreds of user ID and password combinations. With the device plugged into a computer’s USB port, the user just swipes the finger to gain access to Websites whose information already has been programmed, said Dave Klenske, director of product marketing with Lexar. For Lapidus and Klenske alike, both of whom keep their codes on spreadsheets, using a finger is easier than opening the spreadsheet. Measuring about the size of a five-stick pack of gum, the drive is portable and can be used on any computer, even at an Internet café or other public location – a plus for road warriors or mobile computer users.

These solutions are not designed to deliver corporate-grade security, Klenske said. They’re for consumers and small business users who want simplicity in accessing their favorite Websites, as well as carrying data, music, documents or digital photographs.

"You don’t have to remember any passwords and you don’t have to bring a spreadsheet with you," he said. "Most people usually have their finger with them."

Learn more at Lexar Inc. (www.lexar.com), Microsoft (www.microsoft.com), Kanguru (www.kanguru.com), Digital Persona (www.digitalpersona.com), Identix Corporation (www.identix.com), and Memory Experts International (www.memoryexpertsinc.com).

Jeff Zbar, the ChiefHomeOfficer.com, is a speaker, writer and expert on alternative officing. He is the author of Teleworking & Telecommuting: Strategies for Remote Workers and Their Managers (Made E-Z Products, 2002); Safe@Home: Seven Keys to Home Office Security (FirstPublish 2001) and Your Profitable Home Business (on CD-ROM from Made E-Z Products). Visit his Web site to subscribe to Home Office Success Stories, his free electronic magazine on home business and teleworking.