Iris identification biometrics vs. the hand-painted iris on a prosthetic contact lens: so far, the Iris ID machine knows the difference.
Stan Harper CEO of Adventures in Color Technology, Ltd., always wondered if an Adventures lens could fool the iris identification machine. So in October - when exhibiting at a major East Coast optometric trade how in New Jersey - Harper called on the R&D staff at Iridian Technologies in Moorestown, NJ, to test their hand-painted lenses on the biometric equipment.
(Golden, Colo.) - "Our company creates prosthetic contacts with a very real
looking hand-painted iris. We work hard to make the prosthetic contact match the
patient's good eye. As we've heard about the development of the iris
identification biometric technology, of course we've wondered - both out of
ordinary curiosity and concern for public safety - if our lenses could fool the
identification machine," Stan Harper, CEO of Adventures in Color Technology,
Ltd., says. "That's why we took our lenses to Iridian Technologies a few months
ago for testing."
It turns out the Adventures lenses are created with
what are called "reactive dyes." These dyes are the ones approved for such use
by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) here in the United States. The lenses
made with the reactive dyes did not register on the Iris Identification machine
at all.
According to Harper, there are other dyes called "vat dyes" that
can be used to create iris images on soft contacts. These are being used in
Europe. To Stan Harper's knowledge these have not yet been tested on the iris
identification equipment.
Per a 9/23/02 article in the Washington Post:
"Voltmer [Bill, CEO of Iridian Technologies] conceded that the devices aren't
completely foolproof, which highlights a recurring question about relying solely
on biometrics to protect secure areas. The comparatively high reliability and
seemingly tamperproof nature of the devices could lull users into a false sense
of security, according to critics."
"We're not being at all critical or
cynical about this emerging technology - it's quite amazing and, hopefully, will
help make our world a more secure place. We're simply concerned and curious
about iris identification technology in relation to our hand-painted lenses.
That's why we called on Iridian last October," Stan Harper
explains.
Adventures In Color Technology, Ltd., serves eye care
practitioners both in private practice and at teaching hospitals and
universities throughout the world, developing colors and patterns for patients
and continuing research for other retinal problems. Hopefully, to soon help
patients with macular degeneration, a debilitating loss of vision as the macula
in the back of the eye becomes less and less responsive to light entering the
eye through the pupil. This condition is the leading cause of blindness in our
older population.
The company's headquarters is located at 1511
Washington Avenue, Golden, Colo., 80401. Harper may be reached at 303-271-9644,
toll-free at 1-800-537-2845 or by e-mail at e-mail protected from spam bots. The
company website is http://www.techcolors.com.
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2003/1/prweb54609.htm