BIOMETRICS AND NETWORK AUTHENTICATION
In the contemporary landscape of security, biometrics emerges as a pivotal solution to the challenges posed by traditional identification methods, such as passwords and PINs. Unlike conventional systems, biometrics leverages unique physical traits, ensuring secure verification against unauthorized access. Various biometric modalities—including fingerprint, facial, voice, and retinal recognition—offer an individualized layer of security that is both convenient and reliable. This approach mitigates issues like forgotten credentials and theft, ultimately enhancing overall network security through robust authentication mechanisms.
BIOMETRICS AND NETWORK AUTHENTICATION
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BIOMETRICS AND NETWORK AUTHENTICATION Security Innovators
Identification Methods • Traditional identification • Something that you have • Entrance permit, key • Something that you know • User-id and password, PIN • Problems • Unauthorized person takes control of these traditional identification • Difficult to remember password and PIN
Secure Authentication • In a PKI world: • Cryptographic key pair (private and public key) • If someone gains access to the password that secures the cryptographic keys, he also gains access to every cryptographically protected application. • Solution • Something that you are • Biometric
What is Biometrics? • Biometric technology uses a physical or psychological trait for identification and authentication • Key properties: • Universal - common characteristic • Unique - no two persons is the same in term of characteristic • Permanent - time invariant • Collectable - quantitatively measurable
Why Biometrics? • Enhance security • "Who you claim to be" • NOT "what you know" • Convenient • Fast, easy-to-use, reliable, and less expensive authentication • Avoid • Lost, stolen, duplicated, or left at home • Forgotten, shared, or observed
How Does Biometrics Work? • Signal processing • Minutia extraction • Representation • Compression • Encryption • Transmission • Decryption • Decompress • Template generation
If Match… • Smart card data converted into a number • Used as a symmetric cryptographic key to decrypt the private key • A nonce passed from the computer application to smart card • Private key on smart card encrypted nonce. • The application verifies: • certified public key obtained from the network-based directory service • decrypt the encrypted message from the card
Types of Biometrics • Fingerprint • Face Pattern • Voice Pattern • Retina Identification • Hand • DNA • Signature • Etc…
Fingerprint • Reasons to use • 100 to 600 bytes of data size can easily be fitted into the smart cards • It cannot be easily reproduced from the templates • Possible Attack • Surgery to alter print • Latex finger • Solution • Monitor pulse, sweat, temperature and more • Best solution: Measure the amount of oxygenated hemoglobin in the blood
Fingerprint Matching Algorithm • Three types of minutia features: • Ridge Ending, Bifurcation, and Short Ridge • mi = (type, xi, yi, θi, W) • where • mi is the minutia vector • type is the type of feature (ridge ending, bifurcation, short ridge) • xi is the x-coordinate of the location • yi is the y-coordinate of the location • θi is the angle of orientation of the minutia • W is a weight based on the quality of the image at that location
Face Pattern • Face recognition algorithms create a numerical code from facial measurements called “face print” • Possible Attack • Surgery • Artificial mask • If only 2-D scan, duplication of photo • Protection • 3-D images from varies viewing angle
Retina Identification • Based on the unique configuration of blood vessels 360 degree circular scan in the retina • Most accurate • Possible attack • Surgery • prosthetic eye
Voice Pattern • Automatic speaker recognition and verification system • Possible attack • DAT voice recording • Sound-alike voice
How Biometrics Applies to Network Security? • Authentication • Biometrics technology replace Username and Password • Can be used on • Workstation and network access • Single sign-on • Application logon • Data Protection • Remote access to resources • Transaction security • Web security • Encrypt sensitive data transmitted over the internet
Issues and Concerns • Accuracy • False acceptance rate (FAR) and False Rejection Rate (FRR) • Tradeoff between security and convenience • Stability • Suitability • Difficulty of usage • Availability • Comparison failure
Summary • Biometric is one more layer on top of PIN, physical token, and it makes themmore secure • Highest level of security is the combination of: • Something you know • Something you have • Something you are
Reference • [1] David Corcoran, "Smart Cards and Biometrics: Your Key to PKI” • [2] Paul Reid, “Biometrics for Network Security,” Prentice Hall PTR, December 30, 2003. • [3] “Smart Cards and Biometrics in Privacy-Sensitive Secure Personal Identification Systems,” A Smart Card Alliance White Paper, May 2002. • [4] Anil Jain, “BIOMETRICS Personal Identification in Networked Society,” Kluwer Academic Publishers, 2002