1. Network Security through Biometrics
SWETHA.B
ANANTH KUMAR.G
(GVPCOE)
Abstract:
Network Security is Protection of
networks and their services from
unauthorized modification, destruction, or
disclosure. It provides assurance the
network performs its critical functions
correctly and there are no harmful side-
effects. Network Security now
takes a giant loop as biometrics, a form of
authentication using unique physical traits
of the user, enhances it towards the better.
Biometrics is a relatively new term used to
refer to fingerprinting, retinal scans, voice
wave patterns and various other unique
biological traits used to authenticate users.
In this growing world the need for unique
identification is very important and this can
be ensured only by biometrics.
Introduction
A biometric is defined as a unique,
measurable, biological characteristic or trait
for automatically recognizing or verifying the
identity of a human being. Statistically
analyzing these biological characteristics
has become known as the science of
biometrics. These days, biometric
technologies are typically used to analyze
human characteristics for security
purposes. Five of the most common
physical biometric patterns analyzed for
security purposes are the fingerprint, hand,
eye, face, and voice.
The main advantages of
biometrics over a standard system
are:
Biometric traits cannot be forgotten or
mislaid, and can be lost only through
trauma biometric traits are relatively difficult
to copy, share and distribute pace the
previous point, biometric traits require the
person being authenticated to be present at
the time and point of authentication
Moreover biometric systems can be used in
conjunction with passwords or tokens, thus
improving the security of existing systems
without replacing them.
Biometric characteristics can be
divided in two main classes:
1. Physiological are related to the shape of
the body. The oldest traits that have been
used for more than 100 years are
fingerprints. Other examples are face
recognition, hand geometry and iris
recognition.
2. Behavioral are related to the behavior of
a person. The first characteristic to be used,
still widely used today, is the signature.
More modern approaches are the study of
keystroke dynamics and of voice.
Biometric Systems
The main operations a system can
perform are enrollment and test. During
the enrollment biometric information of
an individual are stored, during the test
biometric information are detected and
compared with the stored ones.
The first block (sensor) is the interface
between the real world and our system;
it has to acquire all the necessary data.
Most of the times it is an image
acquisition system, but it can change
according to the characteristics we want
to consider.
The second block performs all the
necessary pre-processing: it has to
remove artifacts from the sensor, to
enhance the input (e.g. removing some
noise), to use some kind of
normalization, etc.
In the third block we have to extract the
features we need. This step is really
important: we have to choose which
features to extract and how. Moreover
we have to do it with a certain efficiency.
Biometric systems can seem
complicated, but they all use
the same three steps:
1. Enrollment: The first time you use a
biometric system, it records basic
information about you, like your name or
an identification number. It then
captures an image or recording of your
specific trait.
2. Storage:
The system analyzes your trait and
translates it into a code or graph. Some
systems also record this data onto a
smart card that you carry with you.
3. Comparison: The next time you use
the system, it compares the trait you
present to the information on file.
Biometric Systems use three
main components:
1. A sensor that detects the
characteristic being used for
identification.
2. A computer that reads and stores the
information.
3. Software that analyzes the
characteristic translates it into a graph
or code and performs the actual
comparisons.
Handwriting
It seems like it would be easy to get a
copy of someone's signature or the
required password and learn to forget it.
But biometric systems don't just look at
how you shape each letter; they analyze
the act of writing. They examine the
pressure you use and the speed and
rhythm with which you write.
Voiceprints
To enroll in a voiceprint system, you
either say the exact words or phrases
that it requires, or you give an extended
sample of your speech so that the
computer can identify you no matter
which words you say.
Vein Geometry
As with irises and fingerprints, a
person's veins are completely unique.
Twins don't have identical veins, and a
person's veins differ between their left
and right sides.
Iris Scanning
Iris scanning can seem very futuristic,
but at the heart of the system is a simple
CCD digital camera. It uses both visible
and near-infrared light to take a clear,
high-contrast picture of a person's iris.
With near-infrared light, a person's pupil
is very black, making it easy for the
computer to isolate the pupil and iris.
The Future of Biometrics
Biometrics can do a lot more than just
determine whether someone has access
to walk through a particular door.
Experts have advised people to scan
their vital documents, like birth
certificates and social security cards,
and store them in biometrically-secured
flash memory in the event of a national
emergency. Here are some biometric
technologies you might see in the future:
New methods that use DNA, nail bed
structure, teeth, ear shapes, body odor,
skin patterns and blood pulses.
Opt-in club memberships, frequent
buyer programs and rapid checkout
systems with biometric security.
Conclusion
The modern rapid advancements in
networking, communication and mobility
increased the need of reliable ways to
verify the unique identity of any person.
Even if we use the best encrypting
algorithm, the whole security is based
on the key. If it is too short, it is simple
to guess it or crack it making several
attempts, but if it is too complicated it
can't be remembered and the common
user will keep it written somewhere, so it
can be lost or stolen. Those
weaknesses of standard validation
systems can be avoided if our own body
becomes our key.
Moreover biometric systems can be
used in conjunction with passwords or
tokens, thus improving the security of
existing systems without replacing them.
References
[1] www.howstuffworks.com
[2] www.technovelgy.com