Top 8 Advantages and Disadvantages of Biometric
Biometric is an automatic authenticating technology that is found in most workplaces, in the present day. The biometric system has many forms, and the most commonly used are fingerprint scanner, face recognition, and retina scanners.
The history of biometric dates back as far as the second century B.C, when the Chinese emperor Ts’In used to verify seals by matching fingerprints. Since then, the system has only seen immense improvements and aided business owners. That’s because the system is reliable and enhances enterprise security.
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Top 8 Advantages of Biometric
The system makes the authentication process quick and easy; however, it has other advantages, that are:
1. Quicker Authentication
Traditionally, businesses used to opt for the ‘pen and paper’ method, where an employee would sign in by penning his signature on an ‘attendance sheet.’ The manual process would be time-consuming; however, the biometric system eliminates the need for physical attendance. Employees can just use the retina or fingerprint scanner to sign in to record their attendance.
2. Improves the Security System
Passwords, pins, security codes are hard to remember for some people. The biometric system eliminates the need to remember passwords. It offers different modes like retina recognition, fingerprint, or face scanner.
Additionally, the system can be used to protect sensitive data, because fingerprints can’t be forged, while passwords and pins can be stolen.
3. Maximizes Convenience
The biometric system is a convenient method of tracking each employee in an organization because it provides authentic sign-in and sign-out data. HR officers don’t have to browse heaps of attendance sheets to calculate leaves, late sign-ins, or overtime for individual employees. The handy tool gathers all the information for you.
4. Complete Control Over Access
The physical authentication gives HR officers and organizations control over who has access to the office building, vaults, sensitive data, and lockers. The biometric system allows them to limit access to unauthorized personnel. All you do is give access to only those who matter.
5. Scalability
The biometric system is one system per organization deal. The technology can be used for more than one aspect of the organization, whether it’s a new department or a special project. It is the most scalable security solution for big and small businesses today.
For example, banks are investing in affordable mobile app development and biometric where users can sign using the fingerprint on their smartphones!
6. Flexible
The biometric system offers users the flexibility of using physical traits and eliminating the need for remembering passwords or pins. Most smartphones, in the present day, have fingerprint scanners that allow the user quick access to the files on their phones. Likewise, apps like WhatsApp also offer finger identification, that helps users keep their data protected from unwanted theft.
7. Offers the best ROI
The biometric authentication system has an unmatched ROI as compared to other security solutions. It’s a single device that keeps track of every sign in and employee access in a large enterprise. The device is much better than a resource who would do the same job for a hefty salary.
8. Complete Data Accuracy
The data provided by a company biometric is 100% authentic and reliable. The biometric system only allows access to authorized personnel and keeps out intruders. Data security is guaranteed once a physical trait is logged onto the system by restricting outside access.
Top 8 Disadvantages of Biometric
The system may offer various advantages to enterprises; however, if you’re opting for it have a look at the disadvantages below:
1. Physical Disabilities
The authentication system only recognizes traits that were entered and fail to recognize the user if their physical traits change even the slightest. Here are a few reasons why traits might change:
- A burnt or damaged finger
- A retina transplants
- Tattooed hands
- If the user is wearing lenses (and usually doesn’t) or vice versa
In such situations, the authentication method needs to be changed to grant authorized user access, which can be inconvenient.
2. Expensive on the Pocket
While the system is reliable and handy, the cost is not easy on the pocket. The biometric system is yet to be mainstream, which is why the setup, integration, and hardware can be costly, especially for small businesses.
3. Physical Traits Can’t Be Altered
Like any other system, the biometric system is not perfect. The system is still changing to become better. That means users can’t rely on the safety of their data. If the data were stolen, they can’t try to ‘change’ their identification traits like they can change passwords during a security breach.
4. Scanner Issues
Some biometric systems can face scanning issues if there is even a slight change, especially if the company is using retina scanning. Iris scanning is still not 100% reliable because the system will fail if the user has long eyelashes, different eye color, or a reflection in the cornea.
5. Software Malfunction
The biometric system is also unreliable because it’s an automatic system that depends on electricity to run. If there is a power shortage, no user can enter or exit.
Additionally, if the software has a bug or fails due to any reason, it will restrict access to users until the software is restored.
6. No Remote Access
In a crisis, like a security breach, HR professionals cannot access the system ‘remotely’ to try and eliminate sensitive data, which is a major disadvantage for the system.
7. Security Breaches
In the case of a security breach, the hackers tend to steal all data to access unauthorized parts of business later. Once the data is stolen, no one can do anything about it because it can’t be altered.
8. Fake Positives
Hacking is an undying cyber theft, which means that hackers can easily manipulate stolen biometric data to create fake positives. Fake positives are finger impressions made out of silicone to access sensitive data of organizations, making biometric security vulnerable.
Biometric – Reliable or Not?
The biometric system can lead to the security of enterprises because it is a breakthrough that is improving with the latest technology to become perfect. It certainly offers pros that outweigh the cons; however, it’s still a system that’s far from perfect.
