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New Technologies Boost Homeland Security
— STM Staff
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This Article has been sent to you from Software Technology Magazine: http://www.softechmag.com ---------------------------------------------------------- New Technologies Boost Homeland Security In a recent Oracle-sponsored symposium on Critical Solutions for Homeland Security and Information Assurance presented to Washington, D.C. area State and Local governments, iris-identification technologies, as well as first-responder map graphics, physical document authentication, and anti-terrorist war gaming simulations, dominate the field of technology support contenders. Iris-matching technologies not only serve as a faster and more dependable identity authentication but can also provide a fast and less-demeaning method for tracking immigrants and new visa applicants. Computer graphics for 3-D site modeling and mapping representations aid first responders in complex urban environments. With the advent of ubiquitous sophisticated computer graphics and publication, authentication of ID cards and official documents become problematic, requiring advanced verification technologies. And ultimately, defense against terrorism may require combat with terrorists on domestic soil -- hence the necessity for war gaming analysis and simulations. STM Staff Given the new era of vulnerability and focus on terrorism, it's hard to turn around, these days, without running into another Homeland Security seminar or convention. One that stood head-and-shoulders above the rest, though, has been the symposium on Critical Solutions for Homeland Security and Information Assurance presented to Washington, D.C. area State and Local governments on Thursday, November 7. Sponsored by Oracle's Public Sector Solutions division at the sweeping Oracle Reston Campus in Reston, Virginia, the comprehensive one-day convention proved to be one of the very first truly-productive information-exchange efforts oriented to State and local governments offering useful technologies and vital training in preparation for dealing with homeland security issues and potential terrorist attacks. Among the many options for participation during the four-track, full day symposium such as education seminars, keynote speeches, group discussion platforms, and vendor expos was the Information Assurance-oriented roundtable hosted by Steve Perkins, Oracle's Senior Vice President for the Public Sector and entitled, "Leveraging Technology to Secure Our Nation." The Roundtable gathered several providers of some of the most advanced technologies supporting active IT solutions available to State and local governments in the homeland security sector for discussion and examination of their roles and the applicability of their technologies. One of the most immediate and cost-effective solutions available to government and private security organizations emerged as Iridian Technologies' (http://www.iridiantech.com) iris recognition technology, which are incorporated in several products customized to individual markets and go by the names of Iris Recognition @ Work, Proof Positive, Private Eye-D, IrisAccess, IrisCode, and KnowWho, among others. Comparison with Fingerprint Technologies With strong patents in hand, Iridian Technologies is the leader in iris recognition technologies. One area where the more expensive iris recognition products shine is initial registration. Few people can argue that the traditional police and military-security method of roller-ink fingerprinting on cards is not messy, prone to smears, and humiliating. Scanning of pre-marked fingerprint cards is particularly problematic and expensive, often requiring human intervention on graphics computers. While electronic fingerprinting has partially overtaken the market for the older ink methods, difficulties in registration still abound (for this reason, in many states, for example, matches on all 10 fingers are required for a criminal conviction on identification alone). Additionally, fingerprints, as a source, are often compromised. Although fingerprints benefit from long tradition and reputation in security work, even fingerprint size and shape can vary wildly, relative to variations in same for eyes and irises. Rough work (e.g., moving rocks in Afghanistan) or deliberate deception by acid, surgery, or excoriation can damage the source prints on an individual beyond legal recognition. However, it is doubtful that many subjects would expose their eyes to acid, radical surgery, or the kind of coarse ablation that would be necessary to foil an iris recognition technology (Arnold Schwartzeneggar's movie, "Total Recall," aside!) -- or how successful such radical iris-modification techniques could be. Further, iris patterns are completely independent of sex, age, or other ancillary data, which is often required in combination with fingerprints to generate a positive match. In a number of independent run-offs, iris recognition with Iridian and Panasonic equipment bested the accuracy of electronic fingerprint recognition by a magnitude of 10 to 1 (and card-based and scanned prints by 100- to 1000-to-1). False positives statistically occurred in the absolute in one out of every 1.2 million iris scans, and false negatives just under one out of every 10,000 to 100,000 depending on verification technology. Procedures and practices that increase accuracy so that false positives fall below one in a billion include using both eyes for recognition, having a skilled operator or security officer present during scanning, and using eye frames and adjustable camera mounts for proper centering and registration. Iris Recognition Technology and Registration Process Characteristics In contrast to the mess and emotional opprobrium associated with fingerprinting, both registration and validation/verification with iris scanning technologies are: * fast * clean * non-intimidating / no humiliation * accurate * require minimal physical supplies * require no post-processing of imprinted subject Iris recognition technologies are dot-matrix photo-matching based, which, relative to retinal scanning, are: * less expensive in hardware (retinal recognition systems require a medical-grade laser) * faster and far less expensive in processing cpu cycles to gain an identical level of accuracy * less vulnerable to medical changes in eye condition over the long term (i.e., pinkeye, glaucoma, detached retina, et al) * less injurious to the eye (does not require impacting a laser beam on the retina -- or any portion of -- the eye). Competing realistic-and-reasonable biometric authentication and identity verification methods such as facial and voice recognition, hand size-and-shape recognition, etc., not only can be too easily modified, but even with unchanged faces, hands, and voices currently have far too low an accuracy rate and far too high a cpu processing burden to come close to the price-performance margin for iris recognition technologies such as those offered by Iridian. Even with the new advent of bio-arrays and portable field DNA-sequencing units, DNA matching is far too costly in time and expense for all but the most extreme of person-identity verification requirements. While costs for DNA testing may come down in the future, even the cost curves mapped out by the recent dramatic advances in that field would not, if continued in the same trend, result in a cost par with today's iris recognition technologies before 2023. Authentication and Identification Authentication and identification of individuals for system access authorization or personal identity verification is a major segment of the growing need for homeland security at Federal, State, local, and business-corporate levels. Existing installations (e.g., Library of Congress and National Medical Library) are said to work well with existing Oracle databases. Site Access Not surprisingly, major airlines and the FAA have taken great interest in iris recognition - for such applications as pilot and stewardess verification, access to airplane maintenance facilities and airport baggage areas, and potentially, even expedited gate access for frequent flyers. And tours taken by several reporters for STM (including the Editor in Chief) have verified that Iridian iris identification access units guard the main central-system computer rooms of the Library of Congress and the National Institute of Health's (NIH) National Library of Medicine, among other Federal security agencies. Border Control In several speeches of top OMB- and cabinet-level officials, the possibility of registering all visa entries into the U.S. was put forth for consideration. The characteristics of iris recognition identification for a database shared on a nationwide basis for law enforcement officials as well as Customs, Coast Guard, and INS (or, whatever Homeland Security office is to follow) lend themselves perfectly for this sort of application. In fact, border control access is already in the planning stages in Holland -- with trials scheduled for the Amsterdam Airport -- using an IBM-supported iris recognition system in combination with a smart card -- one that could be carried as an ID card to other airports for verification (although defense against impersonation is limited by the ability of the smart card to defeat digital copying). In Canada, a pilot project entitled CANPASS is underway at Pearson International Airport (Toronto) and Vancouver International Airport to allow pre-approved travelers to clear customs in record time. Initially, fliers will be offered the service on a voluntary basis for a $50.00 fee. These airports clear 300,000 travelers and over $2 billion in trade, so Canadian port authorities feel anything that can clear a significant portion of that traffic will enable them to focus on the higher-risk portion of the traveling public with fewer resources expended. Britain's Heathrow Airport is using a system (JetPass) similar to Canada's, but using kiosks. The European Union, in cooperation with the Swiss government, have collaborated in funding an iris-recognition-based initiative advanced by the International Aviation Transportation Association (IATA) for both the Zurich Airport and Milan, Italy's Malpensa airport under the moniker, 'S-Travel'. In the U.S., airports arranging for application trials include the McGhee-Tyson Airport at Knoxville, Tennessee, among others. Surprisingly, even Saudi Arabia plans to employ iris recognition technologies to solve a formerly intractable border-control problem. Each year, over 1.5 million Muslims visit Saudi Arabia on the Hajj, a religious pilgrimage. To ensure that all who visit later exit the country and do not remain illegally, the Saudi government commissioned a pilot project for tracking 20,000 visitors. Out of the 20,000, only 17 false rejections occurred with no false positives. But rather than relying on a centralized database or the expense of a smart card, registration of the visitor using the iris equipment generates an identification sticker bearing a complex number tightly correlated to (or generated by) the resultant iris pattern. This saves the materials and computer expense of a smart card, and protects the Hajj pilgrim from the lack of privacy of a central database, since the paper sticker can be destroyed upon exiting the country. Saudi Arabia recently announced an RFP for this iris-recognition-based system to handle up to a volume of 500,000 in the first year of operation. Singapore similarly had seriously-mounting bureaucratic congestion on the border with Indonesia, where up to 50,000 motorcyclists transit each day to-and-from work. Where formerly, cyclists had to present passports and ID papers, now they will only have to stop at a demarked line on the road while a remote zoom video camera captures the iris and performs a match within the Singaporean Customs database. The Future of Identification Applications of iris recognition technologies for the future abound. Imagine that college kids or world-traveling sight-seers who lose their passports and identities through theft or loss can show up -- even in borrowed clothes -- at any U.S. embassy in the world (or even an American Express office!) and be instantly recognized via a secure TCP/IP data verification request 'call' to a centralized U.S. database at the U.S. Passport Office. Extend that to credit authorization for very-high-end retail outlets (say, Saks, Nordstrom's, or the best-of-the-best in every major city in Europe, Asia, or world-wide) for immediate sales -- or even at major banks for wiring cash transfers. Imagine the gratitude of both customers and credit departments at not having to deal with the 'paper signature verification' mess -- with accuracy advantages over the highly variable 'electronic scratchpad signature' nonsense (a la Home Depot) that currently engenders so much time and expense. All without having to carry around -- and losing -- any kind of credit card, bar code card, or smart card -- not to mention forgetting or forgetting to renew -- one's PIN! And imagine that select, high-end ATMs worldwide might use iris recognition to cut down on bank losses due to stolen credit cards -- particularly of victimized tourists. And, more gruesomely, the military of advanced nations could register all personnel for the unfortunate, but sometimes necessary, purpose of body identification in conditions where fingerprints are burned or blown off. Useful applications are bounded only by the imagination. Current and Pending Applications to Homeland Security Use of 256-bit-encrypted TCP/IP communications protocols and remote authentication servers of various configurations enables sharing of access data and authentication grant activities over a wide variety of organizations, thereby improving security while cutting costs to Federal, State, and local governments. For the benefit of first responders, Iridian is further doing research on combining iris recognition with cell phones and police, fire, and emergency medical mobile communications equipment for high-security applications. Secured access to mission-critical computer systems and networks, of course, are a given. And there's no need to remember -- or constantly change -- passwords. In fact, when a central administrator looks at his user log, he can be sure the indicated users actually clocked in and out of the system at the stated times -- quite unlike systems that rely on passwords, which can be easily loaned out to co-workers. Not only can iris recognition technologies enhance security at airports and on our borders as described above, but the potential exists to join fingerprints in NCIC as a law enforcement and forensic pillar, particularly if the military, U.S. passport, frequent-flyer, and visa-entry/border control systems go through. Within three to five years, manufacturing and cost reduction in this technology may reach the point where registration of prison populations and newly-arraigned suspects can reach levels inexpensive enough for use at police stations and sheriffs' offices in major metropolitan areas. All of these applications turn out to be mutually reinforcing in terms of cost benefits and identity verification. And, since Iridian Technologies' patent protections appear to make it a pure play, the future of this company is bright. Imaging Automation, Inc. Imaging Automation essentially provides an integrated system and platform whereby various aspects of high-security documents and biometric inputs can be combined for near-absolute document authentication. Such tests as image scans and analysis, OCR text extraction, laser-token validation, paper-fiber and ink analysis (via imaging in infrared and ultraviolet), magnetic stripe and barcode reading, tests for valid laminate composition and laminate adhesion tampering, smart card and magnetic character reading plus MRZ checksums, and other analytical scans of the physical document can be combined with iris, fingerprint, facial recognition, retinal, and hand geometry to match combinations registered in one or more databases, including government security databases, text-based watch lists, biometric-based watch lists, and employee data. The system, entitled iA-thenticate, is touted as the world's most sophisticated authentication platform, and is the only one produced in the U.S., though there are a couple of foreign competitors. The platform is said to be eminently customizable for specific applications, and has found acceptance in airports (including Boston's Logan Airport), with airlines, and in border control applications. A major market opportunity includes the authentication of drivers' licenses, passports, and other identification documents. Some of the countries outside the U.S. using iA-thenticate for document validation include Sweden, Hungary, Oman, Brunei, and the Dominican Republic. In developing airport security, Image Automation planners endeavor to create a thoroughly comprehensive system of security covering the various aspects of airport processing, ID authentication, and control. A particularly attractive feature for airports is the e-Manifest Web access system permitting security personnel to search passenger databases from any location -- even via wireless PDA. Imaging Automation is anticipated to be the market leader in such systems, once Federal funding support for airport security enhancements is enabled under the Homeland Security bill. PlanGraphics, Inc. As one of a number of GIS (Geographic Information Systems) producers, PlanGraphics, Inc. leads the pack in seniority and technology. Founded in 1979, PlanGraphics is a full lifecycle turnkey systems integration and implementation firm centered around a series of geospatial urban-and-terrain mapping and modeling technologies in support of Federal, State, and local first responders. The Emergency Management Agency of Washington, D.C. is among the most recent converts to the PlanGraphics integration approach. PlanGraphics has done numerous projects and extensive work for New York City over the past 20 years, where their GIS products have been used for everything from tax assessment to mapping the hot spots at the World Trade Center after the September 11 attacks. Working with the Assistant Commissioner for GIS of New York City's Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications, PlanGraphics gathered and assembled enormous quantities of data to model the Manhattan infrastructure, including some which later permitted the pinpointing of gas and steam outages after the attack. From populated PlanGraphics GIS systems, maps of the modeled geography and urban buildings can be printed out giving first responders accurate and first-hand knowledge of key access routes and support facilities. This can be extremely valuable in aiding first responders in handling the aftermath of a terrorist attack -- or even potentially in aiding military and law enforcement personnel in developing plans for approaching and securing an area occupied by a terrorist cadre. In concert with a local community's GIS development efforts, PlanGraphics' implementations mean more information -- critical to successful rescue -- can be provided for the people responding to emergencies. This information can include alternative routes into disaster sites, locations of hospitals, water supplies, and transportation routes and facilities, and descriptions of obstacles and potentially problematic structural areas. PlanGraphics has continually expanded its range and scope of GIS-related information systems, both by aiding clients implement promising new technologies -- via integrating GPS, digital orthophotography, high-resolution satellite imagery, data warehousing, and Web and wireless technologies -- and through the vigorous pursuit of new methods, approaches, and capabilities. As both GIS and IT have become more integrated and more suited to enterprise-wide application, State and local governments -- and perhaps FEMA and other Federal homeland security agencies by proxy -- will find that PlanGraphics-constructed systems are hard to beat. Simulex Corporation Simulex is an interesting entity and product. Simulex -- Synthetic Environments for Analysis and Simulation (SEAS) -- is a business and economic war gaming environment developed at Purdue University in close association with the Department of Defense. Simulex attempts to replicate the "real world" in its most crucial dimensions including competition, regulation, decision variables and interaction dynamics. Similar to computerized strategic planning tools used for decades by economists and the oil majors, Simulex now finds useful application in analysis of human reactions. Rather than being deterministic and yielding hard numbers as a result of analysis, Simulex endeavors to model complex human behavior -- a clearly non-quantifiable phenomenon. Simulex' founders recent work, "Measured Response," simulates a bio-terrorist attack during a major spectator event and the response at the local, State, and Federal levels. Measured Response is one of the first applications of distributed tera-scale computing that runs on two supercomputers linked by an i.Light gigabit fiber network, one at Purdue and one at Indiana University. Modeling such complex systems as human behavior is always a fertile field for science and academic analysis, and results of funded studies may provide insights into how American society and communities may react to various forms of terrorist attack -- and the progress of these studies should be followed with interest. However, the results of a nebulous model may not be sufficiently specific to provide any directly applicable information to the administrative or planning staffs of a particular State or local government. Linking It All Together Database systems serve as the focal integration point for all of the new technologies enabling and enhancing homeland security. Indisputably, chief among them is Oracle, perhaps the most ubiquitous DBMS, per registered copies, on non-proprietary hardware in the U.S. and worldwide. Oracle has put major commitment behind the securing of 9i by building-in information assurance and security features -- from the ground, up (see separate article). For any State, Federal, or local jurisdiction, assembling a defensible homeland security IT system, integrated with mobile communications, the Internet, and wireless systems to support first responders, should be a far easier exercise than was possible a year ago -- and will yield a far more efficacious result. Copyright (c) 2003 Software Technology Magazine. All rights reserved.
