UK citizens ready for biometrics

Most UK adults are now willing to authenticate their identity via fingerprint scans

Public and private sector organisations considering rolling out biometric-based authentication technologies for customers received a boost this week with the findings of the latest Security Index report from IT services provider Unisys.

The research, which surveyed 13,000 people in 13 countries, found that 57 per cent of UK adults are afraid of identity theft, while 63 per cent are concerned about credit and debit card fraud.

With this backdrop, it appears that UK consumers are becoming more receptive to the idea of biometric authentication. Three-quarters of respondents would be willing to use fingerprint scans to verify their identity with banks, government agencies or other organisations.

In addition, 56 per cent said that they would be willing to use scans of blood vessels in the hand to verify their identity with the same organisations.

Jim Norton, senior policy adviser for e-business and e-government at the Institute of Directors, argued that the digital revolution has brought a new set of challenges for these organisations, as criminals seek to steal sensitive identity information.

"It is necessary to put in place robust safeguards at the technology level, but also to complement these through training in good practice," he said.

"Recent high profile stories of data loss should strengthen the call for a balanced approach using the appropriate authentication technology, but also focusing on the right processes and behaviours."