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On Wednesday, Aug. 10, at 11 a.m. PDT/2 p.m. EDT/7 p.m. GMT, @eWEEKNews will host its 46th monthly #eWEEKChat. The topic will be, “How Behavioral Biometrics Is Innovating IT Security.” It will be moderated by Chris Preimesberger, eWEEK‘s editor of features and analysis.
Some quick facts:
Topic: How Behavioral Biometrics Is Innovating IT Security
Date/time: Aug. 10, 11 a.m. PDT/2 p.m. EDT/7 p.m. GMT
Moderator: Chris Preimesberger: @editingwhiz
Tweetchat handle: Use #eWEEKChat to follow/participate, but it’s easier and more efficient to use real-time chat room links.
Chat room real-time links: We have two: http://tweetchat.com/room/eweekchat and http://www.tchat.io/rooms/eweekchat. Both work well. Sign in via Twitter and use #eweekchat for the identifier.
‘How Behavioral Biometrics Is Innovating IT Security’
eWEEK discussed this topic in a recent slide show. Go here to view it.
We’ve known for a long while that passwords, firewalls and private networks simply aren’t sufficient for tight IT security anymore. It’s all too easy for even a semisophisticated cyber-criminal to scan for passwords and find back doors into personal and business data that, sooner or later, result in illicit money in the thief’s bank account.
Thus, the race is on to develop workable alternatives, with behavioral biometrics one of the more promising ones. Behavioral biometrics is an additional layer of security that provides seamless, continuous user authentication.
It works by collecting and evaluating a mix of behavior patterns, such as the way we move our hand on a mobile device screen or with a mouse, to create advanced behavioral algorithms to establish a user’s profile. The next time that person uses the service, the technology will rate the interaction against his or her profile and provide a recommended action to allow, challenge or block access to the account.
These patterns are monitored and analyzed continuously—and frictionlessly, in the background—to provide continuous account protection. What makes behavioral biometrics so intriguing is that it’s virtually impossible to imitate another person’s behavior precisely, unlike static biometrics (fingerprint, retina, etc.), which can be stolen and reused.
Behavioral biometrics could track patterns of a specific user via a range of touch points across an account, no matter how they are accessing that account—be it on a mobile device or web platform.
The strongest form of account security requires a layered approach. Behavioral biometrics can effectively strengthen these simple passwords by adding another transparent layer of security, resulting in real-time, two-factor authentication that doesn’t get in the user’s way.
While behavioral biometrics is still an emerging category, the technology has been in use for the last several years in places where people have felt the most pain—namely, where money is changing hands. The financial services community has been the most active participant, with quite a few banks embracing products that use biometric security techniques. There are many industries that could benefit from adopting behavioral biometrics, but industry people foresee retail/e-commerce, internet services and online gaming as early adopters.
Here are some examples of questions we will discuss during our eWEEKchat on Wednesday, Aug. 10:
–Have you ever used a behavorial biometric system? Explain whether you liked or disliked it.
— Due to their IT-intense nature, behavorial biometrics systems stand to be much more expensive than standard security schemes. Will their expense deter enterprises from using them?
–Which companies do you see as becoming major players in the sector in the next few years?
–Do you know of any holes in a behavorial biometrics system that could be exploited?
Join us Aug. 10 at 11 a.m. Pacific/2 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. GMT for an hour. Chances are good that you’ll learn something valuable.