Hitachi has developed a technology that enables high-precision finger vein authentication simply by having users take pictures of their fingers with their smartphone cameras. Today, with growing numbers of users using smartphones for online shopping and to manage personal information, this technology will lead to safer and more precise biometric authentication via smartphones while combating threats like stolen passwords and spoofing.
Finger vein authentication technology using smartphone camera
One strength of finger vein authentication is that it's more resistant to counterfeiting or spoofing than biometric methods like fingerprints, facial recognition, or voiceprints. However, until now, finger vein authentication required dedicated infrared sensors to read finger vein patterns, which are not readily visible to the naked eye. In response, Hitachi has developed an image processing technology capable of capturing vein patterns from color images of fingers captured with a smartphone camera. The technology identifies vein patterns by emphasizing portions of a color digital photo with colors typical of finger veins. To make authentication more accurate, the technology can also identify the vein patterns of multiple fingers, adjusting for differences in angles and size. This makes it more likely that the software will give positive identifications and reliably identify the right individuals. Hitachi will continue to contribute to a safer and more secure society by combining this newly developed finger vein authentication technology with encryption technologies and other security solutions it has accumulated to date.
