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Home Office

Answer

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place in the Library the information available to his Department on the accuracy of (a) biometric tests and (b) biometric card readers; if he will list the biometric card readers his Department has assessed; what assessment he has made of the accuracy of (i) fingerprint tests, (ii) iris tests and (iii) face recognition tests; and what assessment he has made of the (A) problems and (B) benefits associated with each technology. [206206] Mr. Browne: Work was commissioned on biometrics from NPL (National Physical Laboratory) on the feasibility of the use of biometrics in an identity card scheme. I have placed copies in the Library, and it is also available on the identity cards publications web page (http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/comrace/identitycards/ publications.html). Related work is available on the Communications and Electronic Security Group website (http://www.cesg.gov.uk) in particular the "Best Practice" standards for testing and reporting on biometric device performance and the "Biometrics Testing Final Report", both of which deal with the testing of biometric devices. The Police Information Technology Organisation (PITO) has conducted large scale tests on the operational accuracy of fingerprint based identification systems for policing purposes, namely on the National Automated Fingerprint Identification System (NAFIS), and more recently for its successor, IDENT1. PITO has produced an `Identification Roadmap' which identifies issues on biometric identification as they relate to its use in policing, both now and in the future. I have placed copies in the Library. A very basic benchmark exercise was carried out in 2000 on the Immigration and Asylum Fingerprint Identification system in order to assess the accuracy of the system. The only test carried out involved hard copies often-print fingerprint forms which were searched and stored on the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS). The Identity Cards Programme is actively investigating the performance of operational systems which enrol and match biometrics, including fingerprints, face and iris. Our conclusions are that the findings of the National Physical Laboratory reports are supported by the information gained from operational biometric systems. Some biometric technology has been used in the UK Passport Service biometric enrolment trial, the results of which will be published in due course, although it is important to note that this was not a systematic test of equipment, nor was it a technology trial. Rather than evaluate equipment, much of which may be superseded by the time are first issued we are working with other Departments and with expert advice to set the requirements for performance. These requirements, and the requirements for evaluation to demonstrate performance, we shall take to the market when the Identity Cards programme enters its procurement stage which is subject to approval of the Identity Cards Bill which is currently before Parliament.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

206206; 430 c1267-8W

Session

2004-05

Subjects

Biometrics Fingerprints Identity cards Eyes Identification Proof of identity Passports Standards Technology Research Testing Police Information Technology Organisation

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk