Biometric banking is the way of the future and, for the moment, will stay that way, says Gareth Warner, an independent consultant.
Warner says biometrics is increasingly popular in SA, especially in banking, particularly to control access to premises and computer networks, as well as to record time and attendance. "Everyone is testing, but no large organisation has yet rolled-out a large-scale project affecting customers," he says.
Part of the problem is the technology is not yet mature, robust or cheap enough. There is also a plethora of technology and solutions to choose from and business is part wary of being locked in by vendors, part cagey about the absence of standards, and part waiting for government, particularly the Department of Home Affairs - as "custodian" of fingerprints - to give a lead, says Warner.
Adding biometric parameters to online or cellphone banking - or to automatic teller machines - will help cut fraud, but it does come at a cost, he adds.
"Internet banking would require the user to get a biometric device. These cost about R1 500 at the moment. Who is going to pay for this? What will motivate the consumer to spend that money?"
It is a matter of cost versus security, Warner notes. Smart cards are now replacing magnetic strip cards because the cost of fraud has begun to outweigh the cost of the chip. But magnetic strips have been around since the 1960s, illustrating both the long life of that technology and the amount of time it took for criminals to drive it towards obsolescence.
Warner is also not convinced that fingerprint, iris or other biometric scanners will ever replace the ATM card. He prefers the combination of card, PIN and biometrics.
"It is a combination of something you have, something you know and something unique to yourself," Warner says.
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