'Reliable' palms than fingers

To open the door, log in to your computer, withdraw money with an ATM card, instead of using a key, password, or PIN, you can just put the palm above the small cube machine, black is possible be assured all personal information will be kept confidential. The PalmSecure machine, built by Fujitsu Corporation of Japan, opened a new era for biometric identification technology.

PalmSecure relies on the intermittent vascular system in the palm, instead of fingerprints, to accurately identify each person. The technology uses near-infrared light wavelengths to scan the structure of blood vessels under the skin - like fingerprints will not change throughout life except for illness or injury. Although quite new, but PalmSecure is rated 'higher' than the fingerprint recognition technology, irises, faces (collectively known as biometric technology) . being applied widely. Popularity in transactions that need security.

PalmSecure captures the structure of blood vessels in the palm.(Photo: Courtesy of Fujitsu)

Compared to fingerprints, blood vessels in the palm are not affected by external factors such as cuts, burns, stains, erasure or skin diseases, so the accuracy when recognizing by PalmSecure is always stable. . Unlike the fingerprint scanner, PalmSecure does not require direct contact, it can read information in the palm at a distance of 50 mm and in less than 1 second, users do not need to wash their hands after each use. While the device also limits the risk of failure due to too many users. After recording a vein image in the palm of the hand, the device will immediately switch to a digital password so the image cannot be stolen or reused.

Among the areas of biometric identification technology, iris scanning is considered 'big brother' in terms of accuracy because just like the palm of the hand, the iris has a characteristic vascular structure and has little change with time. time. However, this recognition technique is unpopular in that to photograph the blood vessel structure in the eye, the scanner must project infrared light to the eye while the head must remain still - causing discomfort to the user. In addition, this type of device is quite expensive while the installation and operation is quite complicated, requiring adjustment of the angle of the face to get the image required.

Fujitsu is about to release software that allows PalmSecure to be used with desktops and laptops.

PalmSecure has been put into use by Carolinas Healthcare System, the third largest public health care provider in the country. So far there are about 170,000 registered users of PalmSecure. After the patient registers 'personal vein sample', it can connect directly to their medical record. 'The product works well, there is no problem for more than 1 year of use while the patient is very responsive,' a Carolinas spokesman said. By correctly identifying each patient when he or she is admitted to the hospital, PalmSecure helps to eliminate almost completely the situation of the bad guys stealing health insurance cards for medical examination or treatment of the temple. a hospital case for nefarious purposes. According to Hiroko Naito, Fujitsu's business development manager in the US, the PalmSecure system stores information in non-image digits, so anyone who illegally logs into the system will be unable to understand.

In Japan, many banks and schools have also used PalmSecure to open doors, log on to computers and deal with automated teller machines. Naito said more than 1 million people have used the technology to log in to the account at the country's largest Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ bank. To trade with ATMs, in addition to ATM cards and PINs as usual, customers need to place their palm above PalmSecure. In other words, Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ's ATM card in addition to personal identification information also stores customers ' "veins" to compare each transaction. Fujitsu said that PalmSecure technology could also be used for self-service shops, check-in counters or access control in sensitive areas.