biometric Archives - Page 3 of 24

Preserving Biometric Privacy From Uploaded Images

Next week I plan to publish a post on a privacy court case involving Grindr. In this case the private information was textual in nature. But biometric privacy is obviously a consideration for many of us.

Your biometric (and non-biometric) identifiers are everywhere

I recently saw a Threads post warning against flashing a peace sign when taking a selfie. The threader warned that “AI can now reconstruct fingerprints from high-res photos.”

The threader ignored an obvious fact that I pointed out in my reply.

“…even if you don’t do the peace sign, your face is still there.”

And your face is everywhere.

Unless you’re one of those parents who obscure your kids’ faces when you share them…but fail to block all other personally identifiable information.

Biometric privacy is not enough. — Google Gemini.

I think you can spot all the contextual personally identifiable information (PII) issues here. First and last name, name of favorite pet, mother’s maiden name, street address. Any more?

What’s the real biometric privacy threat?

Obviously the threader worried about one attack vector: using photographic detail (with or without the all-powerful “AI”) to capture the individual’s fingerprint ridges. From there, it’s possible to create a duplicate finger with the ridges and use this duplicate finger to access private information.

Can people capture fingerprint ridges from high resolution photographs? Yes, it’s been done.

For example, a Chaos Computer Club member photographed the fingers of then German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen in 2014. The member then created a clone of her thumb.

And even earlier, back in 2002, “researcher Tsutomu Matsumoto used “gummy bears” gelatin to create a fake finger that fooled a fingerprint reader.”

Sounds scary…but now what?

Put that fake finger on a 2026 fingerprint reader, and it will fail a presentation attack (liveness) detection test.

Presentation attack detection preserves biometric priuvacy. — Google Gemini.

And if you try a fake face or a fake voice, it will probably fail a presentation attack detection test also.

Or maybe not. Some cheap biometric readers and systems do not incorporate presentation attack detection, or other fraud-defeating methods such as injection attack detection.

But many do, and a select few provide the highest level of presentation attack detection, level 3. (The linked list, which includes confirmations from iBeta and other testing authorities, is from May and is probably outdated.)

So you have more to worry about from posting the name of Julie’s dog than from posting Julie’s unobscured face or fingers. Her biometric privacy is preserved.

I should know. I’m the biometric product marketing expert and advise identity, biometric, and technology companies on content, proposal, and analysis issues. Read about my services here.

Stop losing prospects! Use Bredemarket content for tech marketers

Yoti is the Latest Company to Pull Out of Spain

Yoti is leaving Spain.

In the last decade, Google pulled Google Noticias (Google News) out of Spain for eight years because of a dispute with the Spanish government.

Yoti is not quite as big as Google, but Yoti is leaving Spain also.

“Yoti is disappointed to announce that from 10th September, we will be removing the Yoti ID app from the Apple and Android app stores in Spain. Our decision has come about in light of our ongoing appeal through the Audiencia Nacional (Spanish High Court) against the decision of the Spanish Data Protection Agency (AEPD).”

Why? Because the AEPD insisted that Yoti provide a non-biometric alternative to access its own app. Yoti is fine with non-biometric alternatives to Yoti itself, but it won’t compromise on how its own app is accessed.

“However, to align with our understanding of the AEPD’s decision we would have to offer a non-biometric alternative, like a PIN, password, or SMS or email OTP. None of these authentication alternatives offer the same strong protection as biometric authentication. They can be easily shared, stolen or compromised….

“Biometric authentication is the cornerstone of the protections we offer to every Yoti ID app user globally. Without it, we would be unable to provide the same level of assurance to our Digital ID users or to the businesses and organisations that depend on Yoti to verify identities and ages accurately and securely. Maintaining that standard of protection is fundamental to who we are.”

So Yoti is bidding good-bye to Spain.

Medieval Consultant Battles a Taxonomy Refresh Error

Take me back to the time when Bredemarket engaged in medieval consulting.

Google Lyria. Public Domain.

But then things got complicated.

If you have installed the Yoast SEO plugin, and you also access WordPress via JetPack on iOS, you may have to log out of and back in to JetPack for tags to work properly on iOS. Gemini:

“Because the WordPress iOS app relies heavily on the WordPress REST API to sync taxonomy fields (like categories and tags), adding a new plugin on the desktop side can cause the mobile app’s local cache or authorization token to throw a silent schema error when opening drafts.”

Bredemarket and Medieval Consulting

So here’s how Bredemarket would be if I were engaged in medieval consulting.

breb00ker posted the following question on Threads:

“How easy would it be for you to explain your job to someone from the medieval era”

I tried to answer, but failed miserably.

“I write things on scrolls. Magical scrolls that float up in the clouds, but everyone can see them. And the scrolls discuss contraptions that…um…um…

“Let me ask Gemini to rewrite this for your century. Gemini is…um…”

I then linked to my Biometric Product Marketing Expert page, but upon further reflection I decided that I should translate something else for my foray into medieval consulting.

Explaining my job, modern edition

So I assembled existing text from my Who I Am and 22 types of content pages. Could be better, but easy to grab because it’s already written.

“I am John E. Bredehoft, and I have enjoyed writing for a while now.

“My specific technical expertise is in identity, primarily based upon my twenty-five years working for IDEMIA and its corporate predecessors, plus time with nearly two dozen other firms, , and offers a deep understanding of friction ridge (finger/palm) and face biometrics, coupled with an understanding of other biometrics (iris, voice, DNA) and secure documents (driver’s licenses, mobile driver’s licenses, mobile ID).

“I produce the following for my identity and technology customers: Articles. Blog Posts. Briefs/Data/Literature Sheets. Case Studies. Proposals. Scientific Book Chapters. Smartphone Application Content. Social Media (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Threads, TikTok, Twitter). Web Page Content. White Papers and E-Books. Battlecards. Competitive Analyses. Event/Conference/Trade Show Demonstration Scripts. Plans. Playbooks. Proposal Templates. Quality Improvement Documents. Requirements. Strategic Analyses. Email Newsletters. FAQs. Presentations.”

So now I’ll have Gemini translate this 21st century text into something a learned medieval person would understand.

Explaining my job, medieval consulting edition (Authored and Illustrated by Google Gemini)

John E. Bredehoft of Bredemarket engages in medieval consulting with a quill and a cartrier pigeon. — Google Gemini.

I, John, son of Bredehoft, greet thee. For many a season now, I have found great delight in the art of the quill.

My craft and mastery lie in the discernment of a man’s true name and lineage, ensuring no scoundrel may falsely claim another’s estate. This knowledge I have sharpened over five-and-twenty years of service under the grand guild of IDEMIA and its ancestral houses, alongside two dozen other esteemed merchant firms. I hold deep understanding of the unique marks God hath etched upon the skin of a man’s hands and fingers, as well as the geometry of his face. So too am I versed in the secrets of the eye’s iris, the timbre of the voice, the blood’s hidden essence, and the crafting of royal charters, travel passes, and portable seals of identity that cannot be forged.

For my patrons who seek counsel in these high arts, I compose many manner of writings:

Treatises & Missives: Scholarly chapters for heavy tomes, formal scrolls of argument, brief reports, and declarations of truth.
Proposals & Treaties: Bids for royal favor, structured plans, templates for negotiation, and rigorous standards to ensure the purity of work.
Public Crying & Town Notices: Short tidings for the marketplace, news scrolls sent by carrier pigeon, and answers to common inquisitions.
Guild & Battle Strategy: Secret intelligence comparing rival merchant houses, scripts for public fairs and demonstrations, and tactical playbooks for victory in the market.
Illuminated Works for the Pocket Slate: Content crafted for tiny, magical glass mirrors that travelers carry in their pouches to display messages across vast distances.

So should I turn back time?

I mean, it’s one thing to run Bredemarket without Internet, but it’s quite another thing to run it with a quill and a carrier pigeon.

And answers to common inquisitions? Nobody expects a common inquisition!

But this does illustrate that while the technology may change, the art of writing is timeless.

Google Gemini Fails to Understand Gait Analysis

If you look at the pad below the woman’s feet, it’s Google Gemini’s interpretation of a gait analysis measurement tool.

Um, Google, to measure the woman’s gait…she has to WALK.

In 2026, Multimodal Biometrics STILL Isn’t the Leading Modality

So the Biometrics Institute released its 2026 industry survey, and we non-Institute members can download an executive summary of the report.

So I did.

(I talked about a previous survey here.)

I will take the liberty of reproducing one small portion of the executive summary:

“While face at 45% continues to be the biometric expected to lead growth over the next few years, combining to or more different biometric modalities has nearly doubled from 11% last year to 21% this year. Furthermore, when asked which modality is expected to increase significantly over the next few years, multimodal leads the wider field at 40%, up from 29% last year, as combinations become the practical answer to evolving threats.”

My question: why isn’t everyone using multimodal (and, for that matter, multifactor) TODAY?

The answer is that it’s so danged easy (i.e. frictionless) just to take a selfie and be done with it.

But is the use of a single modality wise? Perhaps in non-critical applications, but the critical ones had better rely on more than one modality or factor for authentication, and definitely for identity verification.

Move Along Now (Biometric Product Marketing Expert)

John E. Bredehoft, Biometric Product Marketing Expert.

I ONLY want my hungry people to view this latest Biometric Product Marketing Expert short.

If you don’t care about biometrics, MOVE ALONG NOW.

If your company only hires “fresh perspective” (code word for young) people, MOVE ALONG NOW.

If your company believes that any use of AI is evil, MOVE ALONG NOW.

If your company conversely believes in surrendering your brain to whatever the AI god says, MOVE ALONG NOW.

Good. Now that they’re all gone, let’s talk about how a Biometric Product Marketing Expert can help your company.

Don’t tell anyone I said this, but LinkedIn dot com slash in slash jbredehoft.

Sneak Peek (Correctly Spelled) at Biometric Modality Audio

I’m working on a non-Bredemarket video.

Remember the pictures I shared on Thursday? (Try not to remember that the blog post was originally entitled “Sneak Peak.”)

Well, here’s the audio.

“The Sheriff’s Warning.” Google Lyria. Public Domain.

See you…Saturday?

Leading Biometric Product Marketing Consultants Discuss Privacy

Privacy.

Whether your firm is working with biometrics, protected health information, or any other personally identifiable information, your firm MUST address privacy.

A leading biometric product marketing consultant can help your firm address this to the satisfaction of your customers and prospects.

Unless you want to dodge the entire privacy issue…which I don’t recommend.

Instead, I recommend that you talk to Bredemarket.

https://bredemarket.com/cpa/

Sneak Peek at Biometric Modality Pictures

I’m working on another personal non-Bredemarket video, and it includes these pictures representing five biometric modalities: finger, face, iris, voice, and DNA.

Plus this blooper.

All images Google Gemini.