How Can Biometrics Protect Your Identity?

How Does Biometric Verification Work?

Biometrics involves using physical or behavioral traits to verify someone's identity. These traits are far more difficult—or next to impossible—to change than a password or driver's license, making it harder for a crook to commit identity theft. The types of biometrics include:

• Fingerprints
• Palmprints
• Footprints
• Eye scans
• Voice recognition
• Hand shape
• Keystrokes (the way someone types)
• Gait (the way someone walks)

Biometric verification normally starts with digitally storing a person's unique biometric information in a system maintained by an organization like the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). When that person later tries to verify their identity at an airport, they might use the initial biometric method, like a fingerprint, to match their biometrics with the information already stored in TSA's database. If the original and new fingerprints match, the person's identity is confirmed.

In some cases, biometric systems store only key information. For example, a system might retain only certain features of a person's face rather than their entire face. In other cases, though, the system might store a complete image such as a fingerprint.

Learn more: Identity Theft Victim Assistance

Benefits of Biometrics

The benefits of biometrics include:

• Enhanced security: It's generally much tougher to duplicate or steal a unique trait like a fingerprint than an easily changed method of identity verification, such as a password.
• Greater convenience: Unlike passwords or PINs, you don't need to remember biometric information. This makes it faster to log in to your bank account on a mobile app, for example.
• Impossible to share: Passwords, PINs and security questions can be shared with other people. That's not the case with biometric information, which cannot be transferred digitally. Instead, biometrics demands that you—not anyone else—physically provide your unique eye scan or fingerprint.

Myth buster: Biometric authentication delivers strong protection for your identity, but it's not perfect. For instance, some cybercrooks can trick biometric systems by using AI-generated "deepfakes" to create a fake person or impersonate a real person so the crooks can bypass facial recognition.

Drawbacks of Biometrics

The drawbacks of biometrics include:

• Potential for hacking: A criminal might hack into a biometrics system and swipe your sensitive information, then use it to commit identity fraud. Unlike a password or PIN, you can't change a biometric feature once your biometric data is stolen.
• Biometrics confusion: If a glitch occurs, a biometrics system might mistake your data for data from a twin or lookalike sibling. In addition, a biometrics system might be unable to verify your identity if, say, your facial features have changed dramatically due to weight loss or weight gain.
• Misuse of data: Raising legal and ethical concerns, biometric data gathered for one purpose could wind up being used for unrelated purposes without your consent. Furthermore, the use of biometrics at certain locations could unknowingly reveal details about sensitive subjects like your religious beliefs, political activities and health care.
• AI biases: A biometric system's AI-trained algorithms might unintentionally discriminate against people based on factors like race, gender, age or disability.

Learn more: How to Protect Your Personal Information Online

Where You Might Find Biometric Features

Biometrics are showing up almost everywhere, including:

• Mobile banking and payment apps: Apps for financial services frequently offer fingerprint or facial recognition to verify your identity and permit access to an account.
• ATMs: Some ATMs let you use fingerprint or facial recognition to authenticate your identity and enable transactions.
• Health care settings: A hospital, doctor's office or other provider of health care services might depend on biometrics to confirm a patient's identity, decreasing the potential for medical errors or fraud.
• Airports: Biometrics can speed up gate access, check-ins and boarding at airports.
• Hotels: At some hotels, you can use facial scans to check in or access various amenities.
• School campuses: Some schools, colleges and universities rely on biometrics to control access to buildings.
• Workplaces: Some employers take advantage of biometrics to track attendance or control access to specific areas.
• Manufacturing plants: Some manufacturers lean on biometrics to enable access to equipment or restrict access to certain areas.
• Stores: A retailer might use facial recognition to catch repeat shoplifters or facial recognition or palmprints to make it easier for shoppers to pay for purchases.

How to Protect Your Biometric Data

With so much of your biometric data floating around in a tech cloud, it's vital to protect it. Here are six tips for protecting your biometric data:

1. Stick to trusted devices and apps. While some devices and apps might embrace strict security standards, others might treat your biometric data with less care. Be sure to check the maker's privacy policies before using a device or app.
2. Set up multifactor authentication. Layering a password, PIN or security token onto biometric features, a process known as multifactor authentication, may prevent a cybercrook from taking advantage of your biometric data.
3. Install security software. Devices equipped with security software can alert you to activity or malware that might compromise your biometric information.
4. Update software. On all devices or apps that transmit your biometric data, install software updates to repair security flaws that could open the door to hackers.
5. Watch for suspicious login attempts. If you suddenly can't log in to an account or are alerted to a suspicious login attempt, immediately change passwords and PINs connected to that account.
6. Use an identity protection service. Although an identity protection service can't safeguard your biometric data, it can notify you when your personal information, including biometrics, shows up in a data breach. Experian offers identity theft and credit protection that includes up to $1 million in identity theft insurance to protect you in the event the unthinkable happens.

Learn more: Which is Safer: Biometrics or Passwords?

The Bottom Line

Biometric identity verification is replacing traditional passwords and IDs, offering better security and more convenience at airports, on mobile banking apps and in other settings. While biometric data is harder to steal or duplicate than a password, it does come with risks, including data breaches, algorithm biases and potential misuse of personal information. Knowing how biometrics work and taking steps to protect your data, such as enabling multifactor authentication, can help safeguard your identity.