Risks and benefits of introducing biometrics for public transport

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Face as a travel card​

Risks and benefits of introducing biometrics for public transport

The world market for biometric POS terminals * will grow by more than 35%, and the entire industry - by 12.4% per year. In Russia, by 2030, passengers will be able to pass security checks at train stations and airports using face identification, as well as pay for travel. This is provided by the Strategy for Digital Transformation of Transport until 2030. The existing recognition systems based on biometrics are not 100% reliable. However, the compromise of personal data (PD) during the introduction of bio-identification is unlikely to be widespread, experts say.

FACE PAY SCALING IN RUSSIA

Facial recognition and the associated edge computing technology ** have experienced rapid development in recent years. Undoubtedly, it is more convenient to present yourself than to get tickets or a smartphone. It is also beneficial for payment system developers to stop depending on device manufacturers, Mikhail Kondrashin, CTO of Trend Micro in Russia and the CIS, explained to RSpectr. As a result, the popularity of biometrics is growing day by day.

The transportation industry is the most common application for facial recognition technology. It simplifies document verification procedures and prevents criminal activities.

Since September 15, the number of Moscow metro stations with a payment system for face scanning will doubled. Launched in the summer, the Face Pay technology first operated at the stopping points of the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya and Filevskaya lines. Then, on August 31, the Solntsevskoye and Kaluzhsko-Riga directions were connected. Face Pay will appear on the entire territory of the metro of the capital from October 15.

The expansion of the trial operation zone was caused by the interest of Muscovites in the project, said the mayor of the capital, Sergei Sobyanin. In August, 15 thousand people decided to take part in the experiment, who submitted an application on the website. facepay.mosmetro.ru ... Previously, metro employees tested the service themselves; they made more than 1 million successful transitions.
The Department of Transport (Deptrans) of Moscow promised that

After the introduction of Face Pay, the turnstiles in the subway will open in 0.2 seconds - the fastest in the world​

Also, due to the development of contactless technologies in the Moscow metro, it was possible to reduce the queues at the box office by 3.3 times, officials say.

In July, the Department of Transport reported that in the near future they would evaluate the quality of the algorithms for further improving the identification system in the metro. Today, three solutions from VisionLabs, Ntechlab and Tevian are being used in pilot projects.

The development of a face recognition system in the Moscow metro will allow:

• find lost people and hiding criminals;
• improve the assessment of the load on wagons;
• identify routes with the highest passenger traffic and set the exact boundaries of rush hours, optimizing the transport schedule;
• identify passengers in need of medical assistance;
• optimize the staff of service personnel, etc.

Biometrics will begin to be used in all public transport modes by 2024, said the head of the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation Vitaly Savelyev in September. This is provided for in the Strategy for Digital Transformation of Transport until 2030, which the Ministry made public in July.

In particular, according to the document,

6% of Russian airports should switch to a new operating format by 2023​

Starting from 2022, Russians will be able to check-in for flights at the airport using a face scan, the head of the Ministry of Finance, Maksut Shadayev, also said in September. The pilot project starts at several airports. But so far, since July, biometrics has been working only in Terminal C of the Sheremetyevo hub. The passenger independently goes through control in an automated cabin. After a face check, he freely enters the departure zones of the air harbor.

IS UNIVERSAL BIOMETRY DANGEROUS

The fact that Face Pay will allow detecting crimes in hot pursuit and identifying wanted citizens is a big plus. On the other hand, the technology will significantly affect the sphere of private life, Oleg Matyunin, managing partner of the Moscow law firm "Matyunins and Partners", commented to RSpectr. According to him, the risks of leakage, theft of biometric PD arrays as a result of hacker attacks cannot be ruled out.

RuSIEM CTO Anton Fishman explained to RSpectr that in

The Face Pay system does not store the images themselves, but their hashed fingerprint​

Anton Fishman, RuSIEM:

- This is the so-called "fingerprint", which allows at the time of reading to identify a person's face using a specific algorithm according to the individual characteristics of a set of key parameters. That is, even if this type of biometrics is used not only in transport, the chances of decryption with illegal use are minimal.

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Photo: RSpectr, Freepik.com, lori.ru

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In fact, the metro has become another place where the payment data of Muscovites with all the risks involved are stored, says M. Kondrashin. However, according to him, the compromise of the new identification method is unlikely to be widespread, because the fare is relatively low, and the risks for attackers are extremely high.

Actual shortcomings are associated with the fact that any existing bio-identification systems do not have 100% reliability​

They can be wrong and qualify different people as one, says A. Fishman.

Anton Fishman, RuSIEM:

- Several years ago, the developer company Find Face proved in the course of tests that there was such a problem. It is almost impossible to provide the necessary lighting when reading biometrics. That is, it is necessary either to lower the sensitivity of the system, which leads to an increase in the number of false alarms, or to introduce additional equipment requirements that will ensure maximum accuracy. However, they can also be difficult for ordinary smartphone owners.

The main task is not to allow the system to be misled by replacing the face with a photograph or masking make-up, says Alexey Rybakov, general director of the IT company Omega, in a conversation with RSpectr. The expert believes that if delays at the turnstiles during rush hour lead to passenger traffic jams in the metro, then it should be possible to quickly return to the alternative - “plastic”. O. Matyunin believes that Face Pay can be made mandatory, such a possibility is quite real.

Oleg Matyunin, Matyunins & Partners:

- According to the law on PD, the technology of payment by a person can be used on any type of transport, but only with the written consent of the passenger. The Ministry of Transport currently does not have the authority to implement it without fail: legal norms do not allow.

but

The legislation contains an impressive list of cases when it is not necessary to obtain consent for biometrics from a PD subject​

“For example, this is evidenced by the regulatory act on transport security, which today regulates the processing of personal data by carriers and infrastructure entities,” explains O. Matyunin. - There is no talk of scanning in the face yet. But after some time, an article may appear in this law that determines the procedure for processing passenger bio-data. Including without their written permission. "


GLOBAL IDENTIFICATION

Biometrics as an authentication method are inherently more secure than passwords, face verification should be preferred, according to information security experts in the US presidential administration. Was signed there recently Executive Order to Strengthen the Cybersecurity of the Nation containing this norm. The document was a response to the growing threat of large-scale data breaches and related access control challenges faced by the government during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the summer of 2021, many companies around the world introduced new biometric solutions to facilitate the return of passengers to active tourism and air travel. In particular, the South Korean NongHyup Bank launched service for accommodating passengers through mobile applications.

In 2021, the introduction of payment based on biometrics started in the Seoul subway. The developers claim that the equipment installed in the turnstile area is capable of identifying users even when wearing masks.

It is worth noting that the pioneer in face-to-face payment is China, where this service has been operating in the Zhengzhou subway since 2019.

According to report research firm Technavio, by 2024, 33% of the rise in the biometrics market will be in North America, while Europe will experience the slowest growth.

The global industry, according to analysts, will grow by 12.4% annually, and the segment of POS terminals for face identification will add more than 35% per year.

The European Biometrics Association (EAB) in September 2021 announced that they will only begin to consider the use of technology to facilitate free movement in the Schengen area, which was published on the relevant document ...

Singapore and Dubai airports have already implemented the concept of “seamless travel”, when a passenger does not need any documents throughout his stay in the terminal.

According to the Russian developer RecFaces,

The introduction of face recognition technology can speed up pre-flight formalities by 30% at all stages: from registration to customs control​

Surfshark in 2021 was map the use of biometrics in 194 countries of the world. The report states that:

• in the Czech Republic, facial recognition cameras have led to at least 160 arrests at Prague airport since mid-2018;
• The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) expects to scan 97% of all air travelers by 2023.

It should be noted that many global projects are being implemented by Russian companies. So, in 2020, RecFaces implemented biometric identification in the video surveillance system of Nairobi International Airport in Kenya. In June of this year, the system of the domestic developer NtechLab began to be applied on the railways of India. His facial recognition solution has already been deployed at dozens of stations on Indian Railways' busiest section.

By the way, in May, NtechLab won the Face Recognition Vendor Test of the National Institute of Standards and Technology of the US Department of Commerce in the international competition of algorithms in the field of biometrics. The Russian development competed with more than 100 solutions from other countries. The first place in the prestigious competition will allow the company to master a new level of IT expertise, namely, to create tools for detecting a person's path and identifying aggressive people using cameras.

* POS-terminal (Point Of Sale) is an electronic software and hardware device for accepting payment cards for payment. It can accept chip cards, magnetic stripe cards and contactless cards, as well as other contactless devices.

** Edge Computing - calculations performed within the reach of end devices. They are used for more efficient use of the network bandwidth.

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[David Mamedov]

Interesting posts.

 

[Частный детектив. Москва.]

Interesting article.