Your face is your password with Bioscrypt's VisionAccess 3D DeskCam

Being touted in what sounds like patent-speak as the "world's first 3D face recognition camera for use in authenticating individuals accessing a computer," security firm Bioscrypt Inc's upcoming VisionAccess 3D DeskCam promises to enable sub-second logins to applications, networks, and websites with just a quick glance at your ugly mug. The webcam-looking device (which we assume can also be used as an, um, webcam) looks for 40,000 identification points to verify authenticity, and is said to be capable of not just accounting for facial hair (or the lack thereof), but actually distinguishing between identical twins. That nose job you're planning, however, will require you to re-register. While the system -- which is scheduled to ship in the second half of the year -- sounds fairly promising and convenient, for safety's sake we'll be sticking with our trusty fingerprint scanners; after all, we still have seven fingers left, but only one head.

[Via DailyTech]

[Andrew ? @ Mar 29th 2007 4:06PM]

Awesome hair-do.

[LukeA @ Mar 29th 2007 4:15PM]

Is that a man or a woman?

[iptydafu @ Mar 29th 2007 4:19PM]

Yeesh, more like a plastic-surgeon's mock-up.

[Jean @ Mar 29th 2007 4:20PM]

So if you get into a horrible face disfiguring car accident, your screwed!

[kingofwale @ Mar 29th 2007 4:24PM]

so.. basically, shave your eyebrow, smile a little, get a nose job, open your eyes a little bigger...

nobody will recognize ya. ;), Woot Woot for Homeland security

[Dave @ Mar 29th 2007 4:32PM]

I think that's Robert Smith from The Cure.

[Marino @ Mar 29th 2007 6:02PM]

What if you have a bad hair day?
What if you shave some days and not others?
What if you wear make up some days and not others?

Mimes. Are they going to be the new hackers?

[Lee Gibson @ Mar 29th 2007 5:06PM]

Strong Bad, is that you?

[Lawrence @ Mar 29th 2007 5:46PM]

Could this be defeated with a picture?

[C. Grant @ Mar 29th 2007 6:05PM]

"My voice is my passport, verify me."

[Moni Keo @ Mar 29th 2007 6:07PM]

What would you have to do if your IS dept forces you to change your password due to their password policy?

[KC @ Mar 29th 2007 6:23PM]

So you just need to paste a photo of the person you want to log in as, in-front of the camera...

[ralph @ Mar 29th 2007 6:25PM]

what keeps this from identfying a picture of someone as that person? Unless its using some sort of wave technology whether it be sound waves or something similar, i dont see how it could tell the difference between a 3d image and a 2d image.

[surfwax95 @ Mar 29th 2007 6:25PM]

Could they've chosen a more homely model?

[Matt Helm @ Mar 29th 2007 6:31PM]

dude, i can't tell if it's a man or a woman?!?!

[Steve D. @ Mar 29th 2007 6:41PM]

Still someone can force you to sit down and log in at a gunpoint.

Good concept though.

[Moby Disk @ Mar 29th 2007 8:22PM]

You just have to fool them into shooting you in the head. Then the camera won't recognize you. That'll show 'em!

[TIMMAH! @ Mar 29th 2007 6:49PM]

"My voice is my passport, verify me."

Good job Werner. Yeah, this wouldn't keep out Hannibal Lechter though...

[randy @ Mar 29th 2007 6:57PM]

if Apple software engineers were as cool as they use to be we'd have an option to use the iSight in our macbooks to log in with face recognition.

[Karel Jansens @ Mar 29th 2007 7:26PM]

So, instead of trying to hack through the password, all I now have to do is take a picture of the hackee and hold that in front of the camera? After all, 3D buzz or not, it's a camera, right? Not a laser rangefinder.

[ThePete @ Mar 29th 2007 8:26PM]

Can I ask what's so wrong with a plain old password you change from time-to-time? How is biometrics an advantage, exactly?

[Totalfixation @ Mar 29th 2007 8:31PM]

What scares me the most, is one day there going to cut off a body part to get a system to verify. possibly your fingers for fingerprint system, your eyeballs for retina scan, or even the worst your head for a face scan. doesn't that just scare the bajesus out of you?

[Sven Laqua @ Mar 29th 2007 9:54PM]

You should do a little more research before bashing the system ;)
As from their website (http://www.bioscrypt.com/products/va_face_reader/), it states that the system does use 3D face recognition... So a simple printed out headshot won't do ...

[Picky @ Mar 30th 2007 12:39AM]

So take the picture and put it on the face of a mannequin--it's the shadows that really mess with your face, not the shape it's on (so you could just stick it on a sphere, probably). It might be distorted a little bit, but I doubt it would be hard to beat doing something like this.

Certainly, a non-sensical password would be harder to beat and more unique than your face, which could be used to take a picture of in numerous ways without you ever knowing it.

The only purpose this might serve is not for creating a biometrically secured password, but rather a step forward towards creating an accurate, autonomous identification system.

[andrew marriott @ Mar 29th 2007 10:00PM]

The image has nothing to do with that work - it is from an Honours student' work here at Curtin University.
If this is the accuracy of Evan Blass's work, I am not impressed and it is an illegal breach of copyright. If he is a journalist, he needs to re-learn about ethics.

[js @ Mar 29th 2007 10:22PM]

"As always, should you or any of your IM force be caught or killed, the Secretary will disavow any knowledge of your actions."

[Nick @ Mar 29th 2007 11:07PM]

Uh...What If I get fat[ter]?

[Sean S. @ Mar 29th 2007 11:13PM]

Biometrics has a buttload of functionality when it is used properly - as identification NOT authorization. Everyone here is correct - biometrics is (fairly) easy to fool - Mythbusters did it quite easily. That's why you use Biometrics as part of a two-factor (or multi-factor) authentication system. You might, for instance, have no place for "Name" to be input - you MUST use your face - but you still need to type in a password.

[Simon Beard @ Mar 29th 2007 11:16PM]

Evan Blass obviously knows how to use Google image search. Pity he didn't think about the consequences: Copyright infringement and inaccurate reporting (I'm sure that Bioscrypt wouldn't be thrilled with the MPEG-4 model skinning picture attached to their article). Evan also manages to make the guy in the photo the focus of unfair ridicule.

Bioscrypt have a press kit: http://www.bioscrypt.com/news/media_kit/ - use one of their images Evan, or request something using their handy contact page: http://www.bioscrypt.com/company/contact.

[Picky @ Mar 30th 2007 12:51AM]

To add a little clarification to what I said. It's the shadows that change your face for any sort of visual identification system. If they are doing some sort of other detection along side it to get an idea of physical features (thinking localized sonar here), then the mannequin with a little clay added under the picture to full the sonar would be all you'd need.

Of course, who knows, maybe they have some sort of truly unique system here, but I really, really doubt their system could detect the difference between a modified mannequin with a picture on it, and the real deal.

[Arif Ullah Khan @ Mar 30th 2007 3:13AM]

I think using fingerprint recognition is more convenient then face recognition. I am using Sharp mobile phone with face recognition. Some time it works well but when there is bit change in the surrounding or hairstyle etc it don't work. I hope in future better algorithms for face recognition will be developed.

[Sean @ Mar 30th 2007 11:41AM]

Maybe they try to create a 3d model from slight movements on camera to defeat a flat picture, but a video played of the person moving would still work.

[Ollie @ Mar 30th 2007 12:05PM]

What if I put on a few pounds and it goes to my face?

[Sam @ Mar 30th 2007 12:28PM]

What if someone takes a photo of the person who owns the computer and holds it up to the camera?

[Timguy12 @ Mar 31st 2007 6:15PM]

Does anybody(which they have in earlier comments) see the flaw in this? You just put a picture of that person in front of the camera and bam!