Crave

(Credit: Forbes)

One of the great things about working at a creative firm is that there's so much creativity around that it sometimes takes non-client-related work to fully channel it. From time to time, my colleagues at frog design embark on concept work for magazines to explore new territory and flex their skills.

The latest piece is a special project for Forbes' Special Report on Identity: The Troika card, a concept for a smarter Social Security card with a multifunctional screen that turns your identity card into a gadget. "Of the three forms of identification we have in the States--the other two being the passport and driver's license--the Social Security card is the one that unlocks your life," says my colleague Laura Richardson.

Made of lightweight aluminum, the Troika card is durable but also flexible. A multifunctional screen allows users to switch between driver's license, passport, and Social Security card. Thumbprint identification serves as protection against identity theft. "By combining the familiarity and proportions of a standard ID card with the durability of a water-resistant, flexible screen and the security of biometrics, [a card like this] could revolutionize the future of identification," Richardson says.

Here are the features in detail:

1. Thanks to the thumbprint reader, only the owner of the card is able to activate it.
2. The material of the Color E Ink display scanner is thin film used in electronic displays.
3. Buttons allow the user to select between Social Security, driver's license, and passport information.
4. The sturdy yet light aluminum body will last much longer than a typical plastic card.
5. The water-resistant cover keeps the card shiny and protects it from the elements.

(Credit: UPEK)

"I put down $500 for a Netbook and all I got was an integrated Webcam!" Don't complain. That's not a bad deal, but if you must, I'll see that Webcam and raise you an integrated biometric fingerprint scanner.

This week, UPEK announced the availability of biometric fingerprint scanners for Netbooks and other Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs) with its TouchStrip TCS5 Fingerprint Sensor. Along with the sensor is the dedicated touch-based Fingerprint Suite Starter software that allows users to access password-protected Web sites with the swipe of a digit.

So as users get caught up in cloud computing applications and online storage of personal files to compensate for the lack of storage on their Netbooks, the burden of remembering a number of different passwords to access Facebook and Twitter accounts will be alleviated.

The Fingerprint Suite Starter will be available starting in March with support for Windows XP and planned support for Windows 7 Starter edition. In addition, Fingerprint Suite support for Linux will be available later this year.

There's no word on pricing, but UPEK is marketing its technology to Netbook makers, not end users. So odds are biometric scanners may show up as an option on some Netbooks in the future.

(Credit: Sony)

Sony is taking biometrics from the surface of the finger to the inside with a new vein authentication technology that could show up on mobile devices within the year.

The compact, camera-based system--called "Mofiria," though we're not sure why--uses a CMOS sensor to diagonally capture scattered light inside the finger veins. Data from the pattern is compressed, making it possible for the information to be stored on gadgets like laptops or cell phones.

Sony says vein authentication technology achieves higher accuracy and produces faster reads than other biometric authentication techniques, such as fingerprint or retinal scans. Finger vein patterns differ from person to person and finger to finger, Sony noted, and do not change over the years. Also, they're much easier to remember than passwords.

Sony claims that false rejection rate for the system is less than 0.1 percent and processing time for identification takes only about 0.015 seconds using a personal computer CPU and about 0.25 seconds using a mobile-phone CPU.

(Credit: Crave Asia)

USB flash disks with biometric fingerprint sensors are a dime a dozen. So what makes the Sellgino Dragon Security biometric drive unique? It may be the first biometric-enabled flash disk to use a fingerprint sensor that detects the live skin layer.

Sensors found on other devices scan only the surface of the finger, which means that if your hand is dirty you might be locked out of your disk. In fact, even fingers that are too dry can compromise the detection rate of normal biometric sensors.

By seeking the live layer of the skin, the Dragon Security has a much higher accuracy rate even if you fail to wash your hands after eating chocolate. It doesn't require any driver installation on Windows XP or Vista and can store up to 10 fingerprints. The only issue we have with it is that the current capacity is capped at only 2GB. (Get more CommunicAsia 2008 coverage here.)

(Source: Crave Asia)

(Credit: Sharper Image)

This certainly isn't the first personal safe that's controlled by biometrics, but its design is a definite improvement over previous models we've seen. The "BioVault 2.0 Fingerprint Safe" from Sequiam Biometrics has the kind of futuristic look that's appropriate for a security technology of the future--in fact, it reminds us of the Enterprise's sliding doors on the original Star Trek.

It does seem kind of curious, however, that one of its highly touted features is the ability to work with the fingerprints of up to 50 people; we thought the idea was to keep the virtual "combination" a secret. Maybe that has something to do with its official endorsement by the NRA: It can be used to store a few emergency firearms accessible to all members of the neighborhood militia.

(Credit: Sarotech)

Portable hard drives are becoming cheaper with larger storage sizes, but one of the most overlooked areas is the issue of data security.

A new model from Seoul-based Sarotech, the curiously named "Cutie Bio," has integrated a fingerprint scanner into an external USB 2.0 drive. With a swipe of your finger, the data is instantly accessible; once it's removed from the PC, the information becomes encrypted gibberish.

At about $58.55, we would say it would seem a good deal for everyone--except for one small detail. The fingerprint software works with only Windows machines, which takes Mac owners out of the equation. There is a version that is not only Mac compatible, but also Linux-friendly, but it uses the more expensive 1.8-inch drives and the availability is yet to be announced.

(Source: Crave Asia)

Good news for people prone to losing their car keys. Someday soon, all you'll need to start the engine will be the veins in your finger.

Japanese electronics giant Hitachi is bringing its finger vein authentication technology to steering wheels, fitting them with a biometric reader that only starts the engine for drivers with recognizable vein patterns.

(Credit: Hitachi)

Veins can also be used as switches for the car stereo and navigation system, reports Pink Tentacle, as well as to identify driver preferences, such as seat and mirror position or air conditioner setting.

Hitachi's system--already used in ATMs, computers and cardless payment systems--relies on image sensors and near-infrared light passing through the finger to measure a person's unique vein configuration.

A model car equipped with the biometric steering wheel setup will be on display at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show, which takes place from October 27 to November 11. Hitachi hasn't announced when the system will hit the road, but says it hopes to launch it within three or four years.

Vein readers aren't the exclusive domain of Hitachi, however. Fujitsu's PalmSecure technology reads the vein patterns in a human hand to protect access to secure information. Users simply place their right hand over a sensor, which detects the vein pattern and deoxidized hemoglobin within their veins to ensure the user's identity.

And Luminetx, a small medical supply company in Memphis, Tenn., is taking a technology originally developed to help doctors and nurses find veins in patients needing injections and marketing it to banks, credit card companies and even Homeland Security officials.

(Credit: IDScan)

As if recent laws haven't made smokers feel like pariahs already, now they may have to start punching a timeclock too.

The "SmokeScreen" is a fingerprint-reading system that tracks smokers as they leave a building to sneak a cancer stick or two. Made by a U.K. company called IDScan, it's being targeted at clubs to monitor the comings and goings of patrons who presumably have paid their cover charges but are in dire need for a quick fix outside. Red Ferret says savvy club owners could even promote it as a status symbol, an "automatic doorman for VIP rooms."

The biometric device can be easily adapted to other venues as well. So if your boss is a control freak, you'd better pray that he never finds out about this.