April 2007 — News
Print this article | Email this articleClick here to receive your FREE subscription to T.H.E. Journal
Biometrics in K-12: Ban or Buy? (Part 1)
A vast number of algorithms are on the market for vendors to use for coding minutiae (National Science and Technology Council, Subcommittee on Biometrics [NSTC], 2006). "[C]ritical performance parameters including the accuracy, the processing speed, and the size of database" also differ from vendor to vendor (SDKK Secure Design, n.d., para. 3). Vendors will say their products capture fewer minutiae than a law enforcement agency might require. I suspect this is to market their products as secure for schools. So biometric products in schools need to provide a basic security level, which for most purposes is to verify an individual. Schools don't need to capture all 10 fingerprints electronically nor scan all of a fingerprint for maximum minutiae, as the FBI specifies (CJIS Electronic Fingerprint Transmission Specification, 2005, Appendix J).
Applications in Schools
There is no shortage of companies offering biometric solutions to schools. You can't ignore vendor marketing strategies to get biometrics into schools, nor the research being conducted on its feasibility for school use.
IdentiMetrics associates its Identifi readers with seamless integration into software for a lunch program, nurse's office, and library, as well as for monitoring time and attendance and providing secure access to classrooms and the building itself.
Dell has biometric devices to control access to networked and stand-alone computers and laptops for highest security needs.
Mobile wireless fingerprint scanners, such as Atsonic's SweetFINGER, can be integrated into a bus tracking system to monitor students who enter and exit school busses.
M2SYS has a Bio-Plugin solution to add an extra layer of security to Windows-based PowerSchool, which is a school information management system. Its fingerprint recognition system, Bio-SnapON, can be used with PowerSchool's cafeteria module, PowerLunch. M2SYS states that Bio-SnapON can be instantly integrated with any third party software package. The solution can be used to complement or replace any external barcode or magstripe device with biometric identification and to substitute a fingerprint for an application user name and password or store fingerprint data on a smart card.
M2SYS also has Windows-based Bio-Tracker to track locations, identify members, and monitor entry/exit. The application "allows administrators to input a person's contact information, capture a digital photograph, and enroll his/her fingerprints.... Once a person has been registered, his/her picture and profile data can be instantly displayed from any networked PC using a single fingerprint scan."
Hand readers are considerably more expensive than fingerprint readers, about $,2500 each compared to about $90 to $100, respectively (Kiernan, 2005). Nevertheless, The Academy of Appleton (WI), a private preK-12 school, chose to combine PINs and hand scanning using hand readers from Recognition Systems to secure school entry ("Wisconsin school goes with Biometric", 2004).
As part of a National Institute of Justice (NIJ) study, Hewlett-Packard collaborated with Eyemetric Identity Systems and others to enable Freehold Borough School District (NJ) to experiment with iris recognition to control school entry. LG IrisAccess 3000, iris camera and software, from LG Electronics is being used on a voluntary basis with school employees, parents, guardians, and visitors. Non-participants can ring a doorbell and wait to be admitted. A prior NIJ study had been conducted in Plumsted Township School District (NJ). The NIJ has found that iris recognition combined with the buzzer system can be effective to control access during the school day, if coupled with other, less expensive measures (HP News Release, 2006).
Conclusion
Having a basic understanding of biometric technology and knowing where you might use it are just beginning steps in deciding if you should ban or use it. As the NSTC Subcommittee on Biometrics (2006) pointed out, "Fingerprints have a generally broad acceptance with the general public and ... will be utilized in new systems for evolving applications that require a reliable biometric" (p. 7). You are even going to find biometrics being used in vending machines to control access to age-sensitive products for consumption or that soft drink you want to buy. But, schools are not the general public, and by now you probably are thinking about privacy, health risks, data abuse, religious and cultural concerns, standardization in the industry, and that "Big Brother" biggy--tracking. Come back. Those issues are addressed in part 2.
Resources
- Atsonic
- Dell
- IndentiMetrics
- LG Electronics, Iris Technology Division
- M2SYS
- National Institute for Standards in Technology
- PowerSchool
- Recognition Systems
- Sagem Morpho
References
Ask the Experts: Talking with IdentiMetrics' CFO Anne Marie Dunphy about practical and cost-effective ways of implementing biometric solutions. (2006, August). Retrieved March 28, 2007
Biometrics 101 (n.d.) Retrieved March 30, 2007, from U.S. Army Biometrics Task Force website
Biometrics Glossary (n.d.). Retrieved March 30, 2007, from U.S. Army Biometrics Task Force website
Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Electronic Fingerprint Transmission Specification. (2005, May 2). Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Investigation, Criminal Justice Information Services Division. Retrieved April 3, 2007
HP News Release (2006, January 23). HP powers iris recognition security system designed to improve school and student safety. Retrieved April 4, 2007
Ingersoll Rand Recognition Systems (2006). Frequently asked questions. Retrieved April 6, 2007
Jain, A. K. (2004, November). Biometric authentication: How do I know who you are? Carnegie Mellon University Distinguished Lecture Series. Retrieved April 5, 2007, from Michigan State University, Biometrics Research
Johns, M. (2007, March 27). The Truth about Biometric Devices in Schools. Retrieved March 28, 2007, from PRWeb Press Release Newswire
Kiernan, V. (2005, December 2). Show your hand, not your ID. The Chronicle of Higher Education, 52(15), A28-A30. Retrieved April 4, 2007
National Science and Technology Council, Subcommittee on Biometrics (2006). Fingerprint Recognition. Retrieved April 2, 2007
SDKK Secure Design (n.d.). International Standards--Interoperability. Retrieved April 3, 2007
The Point Group (n.d.). The child project: A primer on Iris recognition technology. Retrieved April 7, 2007
Wisconsin school goes with Biometric HandReader to secure campus. (2004, October 26). RFID News. Retrieved April 2, 2007
:: READ MORE OPINIONS and VIEWPOINTS ::
About the author: Patricia Deubel has a Ph.D. in computing technology in education, and is currently an adjunct faculty member in the graduate School of Education at Capella University and an education consultant. She is also the developer of Computing Technology for Math Excellence at http://www.ct4me.net.
Have any additional questions? Want to share your story? Want to pass along a news tip? Contact Dave Nagel, executive editor, at dnagel@1105media.com.
Cite this Site
copy text (above) for proper citation
