In-Depth Guide to the Advantages and Disadvantages of Biometrics

Biometric systems are earning popularity day by day all around the globe. Many government agencies are highly appreciating biometric solutions.

Many schools, multinational organizations, banks, industries, and many hospitals use biometric technology for safety. Name a sector, and you will experience the usage of biometric systems.

Many industries are relying on this technology for protection. According to research in a biometric system, it has been observed that people have more confidence in contemporary biometric technologies rather than in conventional security systems.

Now the narrative of the biometric system does not end here as everything single technology has a drawback that every person who uses it should know.

There are many advantages of the system but also disadvantages of biometrics. Therefore, we will discuss both advantages and disadvantages of biometrics.

Let’s start with the Advantages of biometrics

Advantages Of Biometrics

fingerprint Biometrics

Here we will discuss 10 advantages of biometrics.

Security

Many hacking incidents are happening every day, and we all are losing our money and our protection. There comes biometric technology, which brings different types of solutions and provides security as well.

Accuracy

Traditional systems utilize many resources, but the biometric system is the accurate one. The reason is simple, that biometric system works with physical traits, and it provides accuracy.

Save Time

Biometric systems are time conserving as there is no need to put 4 digit code but you can simply place the finger on the gadget and if your system is Iris, then loot the retina device, and in just a few seconds, it will open.

Convenient

There are many times when you have forgotten the password. Is it a nerve-wracking situation, right? Trust me, if you are in this situation, then you are not alone.

We all have suffered in this situation. However, none can beat the convenience of biometric solutions. There is no need to memorize anything, as your credentials are with you forever. Be t your vein, fingerprint, eye anything.

Trustable System

The biometric situation is the most trustable factor. Baks have used this system already to provide security aid. It is a reliable system for many customers.

Disadvantages Of Biometrics

Face Biometrics

Here we will discuss 10 disadvantages of biometrics

While biometrics brings many benefits with itself, but there are a set of problems in it.

Physical Traits Of Biometric Are Not Changeable

 

The majority of the biometric systems work with different kinds of physical traits such as fingerprint, face ID, Iris, etc. As you know, physical characteristics are not changeable.

We cannot change our eyes, fingerprint—the biometric data stored in government databases or even the companies has the data.

But can the government or the company guarantee that your data will never be hacked? Unfortunately, the data is already hacking around us.

Error Rate

Biometric machines are less not always perfect, and many mistakes can happen. There are mainly two types of error rates: False Acceptance Rate (FAR), and this comes when the device recognizes an unauthorized person.

The other error rate is False Rejection Rate (FRR), when the system denies an authorized person.

Cost

The cost of biometric systems is reasonably higher than many conventional security devices. The biometric devices, biometric software, server, and other equipment are higher than the other instruments.

Delay

Sometimes, when anyone is in a rush, you want to quickly enter the zone. Say you have a biometrics gun safe, but sometimes the biometric devices take more time. In most instances, people get a hard time when they scan the biometric device.

Complexity

The most significant disadvantage of biometric devices is that these systems are highly technical and complex.

If a person is non-tech, then it will take extremely more time to understand. It is hard to comprehend the biometrics safes.

When a company works on applying biometric systems, they especially hire highly experienced programmers to install them.

They give them training to develop the strategy and managing the system as well.

Unhygienic

There are different kinds of biometric systems and modalities. Most biometrics technology revolves around contact-based systems like palm vein scanners, or the most famous fingerprint.

However, some of the biometric systems are contactless, like iris and face recognition. However, the contact-base biometric device means zillion times it will be touched by enormous people.

Basically, everyone is sharing their germs via the device, so that is why it is unhygienic.

Scanning Difficulty

Some biometric systems say iris scanning is actually tricky. There are numerous explanations why this happens, like eyelashes, eyelids, reflections from the cornea, and more.

Therefore, these reasons are enough to understand that iris scanning is a complicated process.

Physical Disability

Some people are not blessed enough to contribute to the enrollment process of the biometric system. They may have damaged body parts or disability in them, such as fingers or eyes.

For this type, both fingerprint access and Iris recognition device to recognize would be humiliating and merely disgusting for specially abled people.

Environment And Usage Issues

The environment and usage of the biometric system can affect the complete measurements taken by the system. Especially in icy areas, or where there is cold, the error rate is higher.

Extra Hardware Integration Of The System

Some biometric systems or devices need different hardware integration. This not only costs too must, but it is both inconvenient and complicated. It is hard to manage this kind of situation.

Conclusion

I have seen that people hardly talk about the disadvantages of biometrics. Nobody wants to hear it because biometric is shown as the perfect system for authentication and identification.

There are many advantages to this, but we should also not neglect the disadvantages of biometrics.

Hi, my name is Robert Blair. I’m the chief editor of Best Safes Ever. Again I'm a home and gun safe expert in New Jersey. I worked under champion safecracker Jeff Sitar for many years and learned practically a lot about safes and how to crack them. I am still examining and researching daily different kinds of safes to help our clients as a physical security specialist.