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Kaspersky wants to get rid of your finger and replace it with a ring

By now we’ve all likely grown accustomed to biometric authorisation in the form of fingerprint scanners but Kaspersky wants to get rid of your finger and replace it with a ring.

The cybersecurity firm partnered with accessory designer Benjamin Waye and creative agency Archetype to create a ring that contains an artificial fingerprint.

The question you may be asking is why you’d want an artificial fingerprint?

The short answer is an additional layer of security.

The longer answer is a bit more interesting.

Biometric authentication relies on the unique aspects of, well, you. No two fingerprints are identical and biometric authentication leverages that fact.

But what if your fingerprint were to be compromised?

While the idea is laughable, biometric data can be compromised. In 2019 a database containing facial recognition information used by the likes of the UK Metropolitan Police was discovered online. In addition to this, Israeli researchers at vpnmentor discovered a trove of data amounting to 23GB of fingerprint data, facial recognition data and more. In both instances, poorly configured databases were to blame.

Unlike a password however, there is no updating your fingerprint which is where Kaspersky’s ring comes in. The ring contains a randomly generated fingerprint which allows you to use it with your smartphone or notebook and it’s a good idea. However, it’s not the stopping point.

“While the ring is just one of the possible ways to tackle the current cybersecurity problems related to biometrics, this is certainly not a silver bullet,” explains director of Kaspersky’s Global Research & Analysis Team in Europe, Marco Preuss.

“A real solution will involve creating measures and technologies that would guarantee the protection of people’s unique identities. Such a solution is yet to be developed and to be honest, the current situation surrounding the safety of biometrics is not where it needs to be,” the director adds.

What is important, says Preuss, is that the conversation surrounding biometrics comes to the fore and stakeholders collaborate to insure a user’s data is protected.

Nevertheless, with the increasing adoption of these technologies, it is extremely important that we start the conversation within the relevant industries to develop a collaborative approach to ensure this data is protected.

We aren’t fans of the ring at all. It looks clunky and cumbersome and unlike your finger, it’s rather easy to lose. That having been said, Kaspersky does state that the ring can be changed the and artificial fingerprint re-set, in the event of a breach or a loss.

What we do like however is the conversation surrounding biometrics being stoked by this ring.

Sadly, you can’t expect this anytime soon.

“At the moment Kaspersky has no plans to sell the ring. It is not a product but the result of a collaboration between us and the designer, aimed at drawing more attention to security related issues surrounding biometrics,” reads a statement on the Kaspersky website.

You can find out more about the ring and the problem with biometrics by watching the video below.

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