Intelligent CISO Issue 43 | Page 49

According to Global Markets Insights , the global biometric market is expected to be worth over US $ 45 billion by 2027 .

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Grahame Williams , Identity & Access Management Director at Thales
The cyber world is a constant battle . As businesses look to innovate and progress , there are always threat actors trying to either halt that progress or take advantage of it . Businesses start saving customer details to ease their convenience for future purchases and frame the development of future products , hackers steal that information to sell on the Dark Web . Passwords are invented to protect access to information , hackers steal passwords through multiple means such as phishing attacks or simply just guessing . With the world becoming more connected by the day , hackers will not back down and businesses need to remain vigilant about how to protect their logical and physical accesses .
This is because as technology has developed , businesses have sought to protect themselves using more advanced means , and hackers have had to adapt . The latest development in the cyber battle is the implementation and use of biometrics . Whereas passwords can be easily replicated or even guessed , the intended benefit of biometrics is that it is a complex system designed to be unique to the user . So , what do businesses need to be aware of when it comes to biometrics ?
The development of biometrics
To start off with , biometrics is the most suitable means of identifying and authenticating individuals in a reliable and fast way through unique biological characteristics . Essentially , it allows a person to be identified and authenticated based on recognisable and verifiable data that ’ s unique and specific . The technology has come a long way over the past 10 years and now encompasses everything from fingerprints , retinal scans , voice identification or facial recognition . According to Global Markets Insights , the global biometric market is expected to be worth over US $ 45 billion by 2027 .
So , what can biometrics be used for when it comes to security ?
In a world where employees are now able to access systems and information
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outside of the core company network , amplified due to the increase in remote working , businesses have never been more at risk . The biggest issue is one of trust – how do companies know the employee that ’ s accessing their system from an unknown location is who they say they are ?
This is where identity and access management comes in – a vital tool in the fight against hackers . The previous defence for proving identities has been the password , which once stolen can be used to log in from anywhere . The issue is further exacerbated if companies employ a system that grants full access for employees automatically , once they ’ ve logged in . Essentially , it means if a hacker was able to access an employee ’ s password , they ’ d have the keys to the kingdom . Biometrics is aiming to change the identity and access management game .
Put simply , biometrics systems are great for wherever identification and authentication are critical . This could be

According to Global Markets Insights , the global biometric market is expected to be worth over US $ 45 billion by 2027 .

for law enforcement and public security , border travel , as well as physical and logical access to businesses ’ premises or network / system .
Securing the biometrics
With such a widespread usage , the question businesses need answering is how to implement and secure biometrics . Biometrics fills the distinctions of authentication and identification , but they require two different techniques to work . www . intelligentciso . com
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