More secure bank cards
From the gas station to the department store - paying for something without cash is commonplace. Who isn't familiar with this scenario? You are standing at the check-out counter, a long line waiting behind you, and all you have in your wallet is just a handful of old receipts - and, thank goodness - the card! When it comes to paying for something, credit cards and the EC bank card undoubtedly make life easier. Unless of course the cardholder has forgotten the PIN (personal identification number), and is obliged to sign the receipt. Many feel uncomfortable about this; after all, can't a signature be forged? This is why German researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics Research recently engineered a solution for inspecting handwritten signatures directly on the bank card. An innovative device has been created with a biometric on card comparison that inspects the signature. The biometric "on-card comparison" makes payment transactions more convenient, and can work with any ordinary commercial credit card. The biometric "on-card comparison" can recognise a customer by his or her signature: something which is called "signature dynamics." Each person's signature is completely unique; in the process of signing, he or she leaves behind an extraordinary - and therefore, extremely difficult to forge - biometric trace. Based on the chronological progression of the pen's position, which is traced onto a graphic tablet or touchscreen while signing, the Fraunhofer system can ascertain if the cardholder's signature is genuine. In terms of security technology, there is no comparison with the conventional procedure - a purely subjective process in which the person behind the cash register has to verify the signature. This innovative biometric signature makes it much harder for any criminal. Even if a criminal is in possession of a stolen card and uncovers the PIN code, biometrics presents another obstacle. "The combination of knowledge, possession and biometrics is ideal, and guarantees a substantial additional benefit to the convenience and security for the cardholder," explains Alexander Nouak, head of competence centre for identification and biometrics at Fraunhofer IGD. "The comparison between the presented data and the biometric data stored in the card is done directly on the chip in the bankcard, which is protected according to established standards." So it is impossible for the biometric data to be stolen through an external device and be abused." One distinct advantage of the Fraunhofer solution is that it meets all the conventional standards, so that it can be recorded onto any ordinary EC or bank credit card. And this is how it looks in an everyday retail setting: the customer registers at his or her bank - upon card issuance, for example - by signing a touchpad. The biometric features of this signature are stored directly onto the chip in the card. When shopping, the cardholder runs the card through an ordinary merchant card reader. The reader is linked to a writing pad, on which the customer signs using an electronic pen. Once the biometric authenticity of the signature is confirmed, the transaction is authorised. Entering a PIN code is only required, as an added level of security, for those transactions that are high in amount. The number of credit card fraud cases has risen over the years, which is why this innovation should come as a breath of fresh air to consumers. Criminals have become far more inventive in recent years, operating in complex international networks and exploiting gaps in police and justice cooperation. To make things worse, authorities have found that criminals are using wire-tapping techniques and hacking merchants' databases in order to collect and misuse credit card information. European industry has attempted to tackle these threats with various solutions such as the introduction of chip (EMV) and PIN technology, but has not always succeeded. Now the biometric signature will be an added security measure, which offers added security and convenience. Researchers at Fraunhofer IGD will show their prototype development at the CeBIT 2013 Conference, and will test payments by biometric signatures.For more information, please visit: - Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics Research IGDhttp://www.fraunhofer.de/en/press/research-news/2013/march/bank-card-identifies-cardholder.html