Big Brother is scanning you: Biometrics goes mainstream
By Ben Singer

OTTAWA — From high school cafeterias to police booking stations, biometric technologies have already become part
of everyday life in the United States — now Canada
is catching up.

Advances in iris, face and fingerprint recognition technology have made identifying people cheaper and easier than ever. And new technologies like 3-D facial recognition are on the cusp of setting new standards.

Biometrics allow easy I.D. for security and convenience - but questions about security and privacy remain.

But questions remain about the safety and security of biometric systems. ‘Black hat’ hackers have demonstrated scanners' fallibility to photographs and phony fingers. And one researcher in Ottawa has shown that biometric databases are not as secure as they seem.

Privacy advocates are concerned, too. Will biometrics become so prevalent, that we won’t be able to step out of the door without being recognized and targeted by companies or law enforcement?

The biometric ball has already started rolling in this country, with specialized companies springing up all over. The federal government has instituted iris scanning programs at airports, and law enforcement agencies are testing ways to automatically I.D. suspects.

While some fear the implications, many say it is not the technology that is frightening, but how it is used.

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