The adoption of biometric technologies to secure financial transactions is likely to move at a faster rate than in the past because of increased security concerns sparked by the terrorist activity in the US on September 11, 2001, according to a new report from Meridien Research.
The report, "Security Fears: FSI's Face Up To Them With Biometrics," says biometric technologies have become increasingly attractive to financial institutions given their improved accuracy, greater availability, and reduced price.
Biometrics analyse certain biological features of the consumer such as fingerprints, the retina or iris of the eye, or the voice, to verify a person's identity.
Meridien believes that consumer fears and losses due to fraud, their acceptance of decreased privacy and increased intrusiveness to ensure greater security, and the reduction of fraud and security maintenance expenses at the institutions will together be a strong enough incentive for institutions to invest significantly in biometrics.
Christine Barry, analyst at Meridien and author of the report, comments: "The horrifying events of September 11 have caused many Americans, as well as people around the globe, to take a closer look at how we protect ourselves and our identities...A paradigm shift is inevitable as the financial services industry, faced by increasing pressure from consumers, begins to adopt additional measures to safeguard transactions and minimise the risk of stolen identities."