KATS response to Needs for International Biometric Standards

KATS held the plenary and WG meetings of ISO/IEC JTC1/SC37 (Biometrics) July 7-15 at the Paradise Hotel in Busan, preparing the way to discuss international standardization of biometrics.

 Currently, biometric information - fingerprint, iris, vein, etc - is playing a crucial role in a wide range of application, including e-passports, for identifying individual''s authentication. The importance of biometric technologies has dramatically increased and its marketplace has also widened significantly. In particular, Korea''s biometric market size reached 103.4 billion won in 2007 and it is expected to grow more than 20% annually until 2010.

 Amid gradually growing interest in biometrics, the Busan meeting, attended by about 120 national and international experts from 18 countries, was designed to provide an opportunity to promote international standardization work for Biometric Data Interchange Formats, Conformance Test, etc. Also, technical revisions to the part of the existing 27 International Standards related to biometrics discussed by the participants to graft with recently developed technologies.

 Meanwhile, at its meeting, a New Work Item Proposal (NWIP) regarding ''Biometric Data Sample Testing'' was suggested by Korea. So far, Korea has proposed three NWIPs for biometrics, including ''Conformance Testing Methods and Procedures for Biometric Application Programming Interface (BioAPI)'' and ''Vein Identification Technology'' and published as International Standards.

 Korea is conducting brisk international standardization activities at present, with representatives participating as project editors in 16 technology fields such as ''DNA Identification and Conformance Test,'' etc.

 On the basis of this, KATS plans to strengthen international standardization work and national standardization activities for biometric technologies linking with IC card, which will become the foundation for future growth engine and to support the mass market adoption of standardized biometric technologies.