Biometric Evaluation Centre: No chance for impostors

No chance for impostors

Biometric Evaluation Centre opened: H-BRS and the Federal Office for Information Security team up for testing and research

We can prove our identity very easily with a face or a fingerprint. Machines are also able to check this biometric data – during electronic ID checks at the airport or when people pay via smartphone. “The use of biometrics has steadily increased,” says Norbert Jung, Director of the Institute of Safety and Security Research (ISF) at H-BRS. “And with it, of course, the incentives to outsmart biometrics. That’s why it’s important to keep developing new systems and improving existing ones through research.” This has been going on at the university since 2008 and is now being intensified in the Biometric Evaluation Centre (BEZ), which opened in 2021. It’s jointly operated by the ISF and the Federal Office for Information Security.

Be it newly installed sensors or improved software, any change to a biometric system must be thoroughly checked with as many people and as extensive a range of “pen tests” as possible. The higher the security requirements, the more extensive the tests. This has been a stumbling block for security authorities and research institutes thus far because there were hardly any possibilities for carrying out such evaluations. This has changed with the establishment

The K13 recording stand for facial biometrics consists of 13 cameras that capture images simultaneously

From left: BSI President Arne Schönbohm and H-BRS President Hartmut Ihne speaking to the press about the opening of the BEZ in November 2021

of the BEZ. Both regular testing and applied research take place here. The BEZ is equipped with several e-gates, for instance, like those airports use. Normally, the devices read the passport digitally and compare the biometric passport image with a camera image of the owner within seconds. The researchers are using the devices to test forgery detection technologies, such as a sensor that is supposed to determine reliably whether a person’s face is their own skin or a deceptively real-looking mask. They’re also testing new 3D cameras to see if they are suitable for forgery-proof facial verification. Research with an official mandate

The researchers bear a great responsibility. “Official systems require intensive checking and safeguarding. They must meet the highest standards,” says Arne Schönbohm, President of the Federal Office for Information Security. This makes it even more important that research and practice be united at the BEZ. “The scientific excellence of H-BRS meets the experts of the federal cyber security authority here, who have the diverse requirements of German, European and international authorities and partners in mind.” The mutual goal is to establish the BEZ as an independent authority for users, manufacturers and certifiers. Award from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research

“3D Finger”, a sub-area of research at the BEZ, was chosen as Project of the Month by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research in April 2021. The scientists are working on a device that can record three-dimensional fingerprints. Because it also registers deeper skin structures, such as whether sweat glands are present or not, impostors can no longer trick the technology with thin plastic coatings that simulate a third-party fingertip. The device analyses a quantity of data comparable to a 90-minute feature film on a DVD in less than two seconds.