Biometry: good or not

Since 911, the world has been shaken by the fear of terrorism. Leading countries like the USA are trying to control the situation. However, so far the situation continues to worsen. One way to manage this fear is to improve the techniques needed to identify terrorists. The more you know, the less you fear. Biometry offers some solutions.

Biometry is a new tool which can be used to identify an individual on the basis of his/her unique biological properties, such as fingerprints, DNA, etc. At first sight, biometry appears to be promising. Theoretically, if terrorists leave any traces, they can be identified and caught. Or better yet, they can be identified before they commit a crime.

In addition, daily life might be easier. It can deter people from stealing and stolen items can be matched with and returned to their proper owners. Thieves cannot use the items they have stolen. Border controls are simpler and more effective. This is a comfort to the tourist or businessman. And of course, this means better online protection of computer networks and financial transactions. Furthermore, users don’t need to remember a long password or to be careful that it is not stolen.

However, biometry use in public is still far from realization. It is very controversial because of its disadvantages. Biometry is a new technology that is not well established. Therefore, it is still expensive and there are many errors in the system. It is argued that there may be hygienic problems with touch systems. Pessimistically viewed, biometry could lead to a "big brother" society where all citizens are watched and controlled.

And in the worst-case scenario, biological data could be stolen. The German minister for internal affairs, Schäuble, wanted to legalize the use of biometry nationwide. During the following week, a group of hackers posted on the web that they had acquired Schäuble’s fingerprints at a meeting and they published them for all to see. Could this mean that biometry cannot help to keep us safe?

All in all, biometry is a new technology, one which uses biological characteristics to identify an individual. It is thought to be a means to identify terrorists. However, this technology is still in its early stages of development and fraught with problems. To use it properly, it must be improved. Moreover, its application in daily life is questionable and may require regulations to avoid damaging human dignity and the right to privacy.

Update from “the Economist” on 12^th July 2008: Siemens, a German firm, and AXSionics, a Swiss firm, show a new fingerpritings scanning device that can scan all ten fingers of customer and detect the blood circulation, before allowing the transaction. But two big problems remain—convenience and cost. The customers must spend more time on device and this device is very expensive to put it in common. Furthermore, due to its high cost, the device can be stolen as well.