Android accredits Idiap's biometrics center

Android accredits Idiap's biometrics center

To face the increasing use of biometrics systems, Android set up its own certification standard. The biometrics center of Idiap became accredited to deliver certificates meeting these standards. This competence builds up on the FIDO accreditation obtained in 2019.

More and more apps are using biometry. The use of our biometric data ranges from user identity verification to payment validation. The reliability and the trustworthiness of these apps rely on how they were developed. To control their level of security, their biometric features must be audited following a common standard. To be trusted, Android certification value lies in the fact that a third party is conducting the evaluation. Idiap’s Swiss Center for Biometrics Research and Testing received its accreditation allowing it to conduct the evaluation required by Android.

Detection of a spoofing attack on a smartphone

A constantly changing field

With the continuous evolution of technologies, the reliability of security systems based on biometrics must be constantly updated. A picture, a video or a mask should not be used to impersonate somebody. The validation of biometric features in an app is a key element to establish security standards.

Active since 2014 thanks to the support of the Canton of Valais and the city of Martigny, the Center for biometrics is among the few laboratories accredited by Android. This accreditation is another asset, as the Center received the FIDO benchmark accreditation in 2019. Idiap’s laboratory for biometrics testing is using a dedicated room with data acquisition hardware, a test bed and masks for spoofing attacks on face recognition systems.

 

More information

- Biometrics Security and Privacy research group

- Swiss Center for Biometrics Research and Testing

- Android web page for Measuring Biometric Unlock Security