Ah, Finally Somebody Sees My View
Whenever we place of business has unfortunately succumbed into a being a victim of a cyber crime or even a traditional security breach, there is always that moment of rush to find the fix-it-all which will prevent the certain attack from happening again, and also to avoid any other types and kinds of attacks. Security vendors, with all of their good intentions, try to develop products and solutions which not only protect their customers, but also hopefully quell their fears as well.
But admittedly, there is that rush amongst them to capitalize on this fear as a sheer marketing tactic. For example, if a certain business was attacked, in the rush to prevent any image damaging scenarios, this business will go to any vendor who will basically promise them the moon and the stars.
Yes, I am sure that their product or solution probably does the job, but it is not the fix it all for all security issues. The same is with Biometrics. For as long as I have been in this field selling products and constantly write about, people always think that Biometrics is the cure all in the world of security. Quite frankly, it is not.
Yea, it is a sexy tool which totally mystifies people, but the truth is, it is just another piece of technology, just like the next piece of anti virus or anti malware software. There is nothing great about it. The tragic events of 9/11 are a prime example of this. After a short period of time after the terrorist attacks, facial recognition was touted to be the next big thing. The stocks of facial recognition vendors skyrocketed, and it felt like an Internet boom of the late 90’s all over again.
But after the facial recognition showed its true face, and didn’t live up to the hype of the media and press, it was totally derailed as a useless solution. This really wasn’t fair going to these extremes, facial recognition at the time was a viable technology, but it was not the only means in which to protect a place of business. That is what I tell everybody all the time. Yea, Biometrics is a good tool to use in your security arsenal, but it should not be your only line of defense.
It is just as vulnerable as anything else, and has its own set of flaws (shameless self promotion: read my book when it comes out). So today, I was quite surprised when I saw a press release that the Biometrics Institute is actually holding a conference to go over and review the vulnerabilities of Biometrics.
Some details: “The Biometrics Institute has announced the Biometrics Institute Vulnerability Assessment Workshop, April 29, 2013 in London, to explore biometric vulnerability and the work that is going on in the industry. The Biometrics Institute established the Biometrics Institute Vulnerability Assessment Expert Group (BVAEG) in 2010 in order to raise awareness about the importance of biometric vulnerability assessments and to exchange knowledge and experiences. Its overall mission is to reduce vulnerabilities in biometrics. It’s membership is comprised of high level experts in the field from around the world.” (SOURCE: http://www.biometricupdate.com/201302/biometrics-institute-announces-vulnerability-assessment-workshop/).
My Take
Yea, you might be thinking, who cares, another conference. But I am actually very happy to see that this venue will take place. Maybe people will finally get it that Biometrics is not the cure all it is touted to be. From up above, you can see that many top people will be attending, so it is something which will be taken very, very seriously, at least hopefully.
In fact, I think this is the first time I have even seen such a venue in existence. But whatever the outcome, the best possible security solution is my ever so famous Security Equation, which states that: Technology + Human Vigilance = Great Security.
Simple enough yea, but it is hard to believe that so many top level executives just don’t get it. We need a combination of the new (technology) and the old (the human component) in order to truthfully provide 100% protection for any type or kind of business.
What an interesting article! So informative. Thanks for sharing!
Posted by: darcy hubbert | February 19, 2013 at 03:23 AM