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Biometrics Cracked
John Stith
Staff Writer
2006-02-02
 Insider Reports RSS Feed
A new case surfacing in Holland this week on the Dutch TV show Nieuwslicht (Newslight) said the security of a biometric passport had been compromised. Apparently, the hackers read the passport remotely and then cracked the security using inherent flaws. The biometric data was then accessible.
According to the Register story, Delft smartcard security specialist Riscure said the attack would be executed at a distance of about 11 yards or so and the security is cracked. Hackers can list the birthday, the face and fingerprint off the passport. They said it could all be done in a couple of hours. This is aided by the fact that Dutch passport numbering is sequential.
This shows one major factor with electronic security and that is no system is infallible. As banks and many other companies look for stronger security measure to protect their customers, this case of biometrics being copied reiterates the point that no one single security measure will do it all.
In this case, biometrics is important, but the Dutch government not only needs to improve what they already have but perhaps put in some additional measures to protect their passports. The same could be said for lots of companies considering their security strength. Make sure multiple levels of security are in place.
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About the Author:
John is a staff writer for SecurityProNews covering cyber security.
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