Good luck skimming an ATM card and stealing someone’s PIN number if that PIN number is their face. A new breed of ATM has just been introduced in China that replaces the traditional numeric PIN with a facial recognition system that only allows users to withdraw cash if details from the face scan match those on the card.
Essentially, cardholders register their face with the bank via a series of photographs, and when they step up to the ATM, a camera located above the screen captures the image and compares it to database. To ensure that changes in hair and facial hair appearance don’t compromise the user’s ability to withdraw funds, the ATM uses far more subtle biological parameters when matching an identity such the distance between key points on a user’s facial features — nose, eyes, and mouth.
Developed in a collaboration between the Chinese homegrown tech firm Tzekwan and the Tsinghua University, the technology will be commercially available in the short term, states the Tzekwan chairman Gu Zikun, although it’s currently unclear which company will actually manufacture the machines.
The machine is 20% more accurate at determining the authenticity of foreign currency, and should help reduce the likelihood of theft. In addition, the ATM records the serial number of every single bill deposited, making it very easy to identify those attempting to commit financial fraud.
Will this type of technology ever be introduced in the United States? Doubtful, given the well-deserved paranoia following NSA-contractor Edward Snowden’s whistleblowing. Not to mention, embedded chips for added security are only now finding their way into US bank cards.
Source: ibtimes.co.uk
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