With nearly eight billion people on the planet—and more than half of them online—verifying identities has become one of the greatest technological challenges of our time. To meet this challenge, the evolution of virtual reality has significantly influenced the rise of biometric security, driven by technological advancements and user-friendly experiences.
Modern biometrics can seem like science fiction, but the concept is far from new. Sir Francis Galton, cousin of the famous Charles Darwin, used an analysis of over 8,000 fingerprint samples to publish what would become the first fingerprint classification system in history. This was an early example of how the evolution of technology, even before the era of virtual reality, began shaping the way we identify individuals.
Building on Galton’s work, the Metropolitan Police of London used shapes like whorls and loops to identify individuals based on fingerprint patterns at the beginning of the 20th century. The resulting Henry Classification System is so effective that it remains the foundation for the most common form of biometrics today—the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS). This system demonstrates the ongoing evolution of virtual reality and other technologies that continuously enhance biometric security.
Today’s infographic, from Computer Science Zone, covers biometric security from multiple angles, including how the evolution of virtual reality is influencing current use cases and the methods people use to outsmart existing security measures.
Evolution of Virtual Reality: Understanding Biometric Security
There are three primary ways to prove one’s identity:
- Using something you possess (e.g., keys, badge, documentation)
- Using something you know (e.g., password, code, security question)
- Using an intrinsic identifying feature (e.g., fingerprint, face)
Biometrics falls into the third category, using biological measurements to identify individuals. These measurements are derived from physical characteristics, such as irises, fingerprints, facial features, or even a person’s voice. As virtual reality evolves, these biometric methods are becoming more sophisticated, enhancing security in both digital and physical worlds.
Augmenting Security Through Evolution of Virtual Reality
By now, we’re all aware that solely using text passwords leaves our information at risk. Even in 2019, the top passwords were still “123456” and “password.” As the evolution of virtual reality progresses, it brings with it a need for more advanced security measures. While passwords remain the default method of accessing accounts, two-factor authentication has been introduced to add a layer of security. This method commonly involves sending an email or text message to ensure only the rightful owner of an account can log in.
Increasingly, however, biometric security measures are replacing these steps. Apple’s introduction of a fingerprint scanner in the iPhone 5S was a high-profile example of biometrics moving into widely available consumer products. Today, every new smartphone on the market has some sort of biometric feature, showcasing the rapid evolution of virtual reality and its impact on everyday technology.
The Role of Facial Recognition in the Evolution of Virtual Reality
Today, many consumers are comfortable using fingerprint recognition to access their devices, but there remains skepticism around facial recognition—only 14% of people prefer this method. However, due to the evolution of virtual reality, facial recognition technology is becoming more prevalent. Both consumer technology and government entities are investing in facial recognition. Identifying citizens has always been a challenge for law enforcement, border control, airport security, and other regulated systems. Facial recognition offers a quick and cost-effective solution for identifying people at scale.
For instance, the Schengen Entry-Exit System in Europe will use a mix of fingerprint and facial recognition to alleviate security bottlenecks at airports. Similarly, in China, a new rule requires facial recognition scans for registering a new SIM card, highlighting how the evolution of virtual reality is being leveraged for security and data collection.
Behavioral Biometrics and Virtual Reality
Another aspect of biometric security involves detecting changes in behavioral patterns to prevent fraud or unauthorized access. This method looks beyond physical features, relying instead on the evolution of technology to detect suspicious activity. With money laundering and fraud costing the global economy upwards of $2 trillion per year, financial institutions have a strong incentive to invest in early fraud detection. Behavioral biometrics is proving to be an effective way of detecting suspicious login attempts and flagging transfers that deviate from expected patterns.
The Future of Biometric Security in Virtual Reality
As biometric security in consumer products continues to develop, it is far from foolproof. The evolution of virtual reality and related technologies is still ongoing, and security systems have been known to be tricked by fingerprint cloning or masks. As with any security measure, there will always be an arms race between companies and hackers looking to slip past defenses.
Another issue raised by increasing biometric use is privacy. Critics argue that iris scans and facial recognition don’t enjoy the same protections from law enforcement as traditional passwords. Passwords fall under the protection of the Fifth Amendment because a defendant would have to verbally provide them, but biometric data does not have this protection. As the evolution of virtual reality continues, this debate will only intensify.
In the meantime, as our physical attributes increasingly become our key to the digital world, understanding the role of virtual reality in this evolution is more important than ever.
