Biometric Authentication Systems Attacks: Liveness Detection to the Rescue

Abstract

Before current era of security complexities, password alone was enough to protect systems. However, hackers have perfected algorithms to break through data bases protected only by pass words. This has led to extended research towards the deployment of of Biometric Authentication Systems (BAS). Biometric systems are believed to have established trusted potential to provide security for a variety of applications. BAS are nowadays being introduced in many applications and have already been deployed to protect personal computers, Banking machines, credit cards, electronic transactions, airports, high security institutions like nuclear facilities, Military Bases and other applications like border control, access control, sensitive data protection and on-line tracking systems. Like any other security systems, biometrics has its own vulnerabilities and weakness. This paper has identified such vulnerabilities and threats, particularly susceptible to external vulnerabilities of biometric systems and countermeasures (e.g. liveness detection) have been presented here to forestall such attacks and to provoke new research interest in this new field of authentication system.

Keywords: Liveness, Biometrics, Biometric Systems, Authentication, Verification, Vulnerabilities, attacks, Threats.