Challenges of Hr Free Essays

Difficulties of HR The future accomplishment of any associations depends on the capacity to deal with a differing assortment of ability that can bring creative thoughts, points of view and perspectives to their work. The test and issues looked of work environment decent variety can be transformed into a vital authoritative resource if an association can gain by this mixture of differing abilities. With the blend of abilities of differing social foundations, sexual orientations, ages and ways of life, an association can react to business openings all the more quickly and imaginatively, particularly in the worldwide field, which must be one of the significant authoritative objectives to be accomplished. We will compose a custom paper test on Difficulties of Hr or on the other hand any comparable theme just for you Request Now All the more critically, if the authoritative condition doesn't bolster decent variety comprehensively, one dangers losing ability to contenders. The job of HR has transformed from an essentially managerial situation to one that is progressively key. Times surely have change from those occasions when the HR office was known as the â€Å"smile and file† division since in that time the essential capabilities for HR were basically an inviting aura and a capacity to document. The rising patterns in HR call for HR Professionals to start to lead the pack in getting ready for the future and turning out to be key colleagues in their associations. The way to HR making arrangements for the future starts with one basic inquiry that HR Professionals need to pose to themselves: If we are effective in the years to come, what will our clients and rivals are stating about us? With the responses to this inquiry, HR Professionals can detail an unmistakable, shared vision and an ability to read a compass for the association. The job of the HR Professional is developing with the change in serious market condition and the acknowledgment that Human Resource Management must assume an increasingly vital job in the achievement of an association. Associations that don't put their accentuation on pulling in and holding gifts may wind up in desperate results, as their rivals might be defeating them in the key work of their HR. With the expansion in rivalry, locally or all around, associations must turn out to be progressively versatile, strong, coordinated, and client centered to succeed. What's more, inside this adjustment in condition, the HR Professional needs to advance to turn into a key accomplice, a representative support or advocate, and a change tutor inside the association. So as to succeed, HR must be a business driven capacity with a careful comprehension of the organization’s large picture and have the option to impact key choices and approaches. By and large, the focal point of today’s HR Professional is on vital work force maintenance and gifts advancement. HR Professionals will be mentors, guides, tutors, and progression organizers to help inspire organization’s individuals and their steadfastness. The HR Professional will likewise advance and battle for values, morals, convictions, and otherworldliness inside their associations, particularly in the administration of working environment decent variety. The job of the HR Professional must resemble the requirements of the evolving association. Effective associations are getting progressively versatile, flexible, brisk to change bearings, and client focused. Inside this condition, the HR Professional must figure out how to oversee viably through arranging, sorting out, driving and controlling the human asset and be educated of rising patterns in preparing and representative turn of events. The Twenty-first century perceives the significance of HR Professionals in their commitment to providing the best labor gracefully in a flourishing industry. Associations in the business world depend on Human Resources supervisory groups in managing business capacities, for example, recruiting, preparing, directing meetings, transferring of organization related business patterns and issues and employees’ benefits and such. People who work inside this kind of industry are entrusted to ensuring that the gave workforce are capable in their separate business jobs and can work ideally under any condition. Organizations are progressively looking for innovative answers for smooth out the rudiments of HR organization, oversee capabilities, manage execution and lift learning. Making them work in show stays a colossal test. The HR work has a chance to convey on the guarantee of turning into a key office inside your association. Recently, innovation has been empowering HR offices to reevaluate themselves as a key colleague, giving chances to HR to assume a more noteworthy job in adjusting the workforce to business targets. The final product can be improved authoritative execution. HR Professionals stay with the they are working with ready to remain on top in spite of existing rivalry against organizations who contend with a similar item or administrations a specific organization takes into account. The best HR Professionals include worth and have any kind of effect with their associations. They do this by regarding their areas of expertise as colleagues, envisioning their requirements and giving HR arrangements without a moment to spare. About the Author Syed Imtiaz Hussain is Head of HR Administration in one of the main worldwide Company. As an individual from top supervisory crew; he builds up a profoundly proficient A-Class HR condition in the association by using his tremendous useful and visionary experience of HRM and HRD. He accepts associations that put resources into individuals can confront the worldwide financial and innovative difficulties in better manner. His various of articles were Published in driving Newspapers and professional diaries. He is likewise the creator of â€Å"HR Global Challenges†. In the event that you have questions or remarks about this article, you can contact Imtiaz at (www. whrppk. com) imtiaz@whrppk. com Step by step instructions to refer to Challenges of Hr, Essay models

Organizational Theory Attainments and Experience

Question: Talk about how authoritative hypothesis can be utilized viably to oversee individuals in ventures, distinguishing cases as models and undertaking the executives approach. Answer: Presentation Venture managementis the industriousness of deals with, detailing, information, fulfillments and experience to achieve theprojecttargets. For the most part, aprojectis an unparalleled, fleeting endeavor, contracted to accomplish structured destinations, which could bedelimitatedin terms of creation and results or gains. PMP hypothesis Organizational theoryanalyzes foundations to decide the structures and structures they apply to determine issues, increment ability and yield, a relationship of the chiefs and specialists in the association and meet the wants of speculators. It additionally clarifies procedures in which a foundation can header with quick change. Models Hypothesis X AND Y Google gives its representatives opportunity and ensures they love their work. Google empowers their representatives to work deftly. It likewise guarantees that the working environment is agreeable, including advisors to oat bars. It additionally permits its representatives to be inventive. Representatives are urged to remain and be gainful. This business take a gander at their representatives as autonomous, and accept that they make the most of their work. Work is unavoidable, and self-realizing. These organizations don't micromanage their representatives, since they lean toward them to be inventive and take responsibility for work. Genencor Company-which is a biotechnological organization was likewise positioned as the best work environment by the human asset the board in 2005. This organization utilizes hypothesis y method of the executives. It permits its representatives to remunerate their kindred associates with on the spot awards for their exceptional work. The organization is a model of advancement, collaboration and efficiency. Inspiration Hygiene Theory Great strategies and organization inside the work association will empower expanded efficiency. Laborers will likewise be persuaded by a decent pay, accomplishment underway through expanded deals and acknowledgment by their seniors for their great work. An examination was done in Hong Kong inn workers to decide the activity related inspirations that were essential to them. The examination utilized Kovach 1980 inspirations as a kind of perspective rundown. The consequences of the examination were in accordance with those of Herzberg et. al 1959. They discovered that factors that persuaded the representatives included: the work being intriguing, the open door for them to progress and create and the sentiment of being associated with the work environment. This lead to expanded efficiency and employment fulfillment. Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs This hypothesis delineates that there are essential needs an individual needs to meet first before they can move to different necessities. This needs start with true serenity mental. The laborer ought to likewise be content with the security to be agreeable. The workplace ought to likewise be allowed to empower socialization. The administration should then improve their laborers regard through complementation. This will prompt self-realization prompting expanded profitability. The hypothesis is actualized in every primary school. Before an understudy's subjective requests must be met they initially should satisfy their fundamental physiological needs. For example a worn out and hungry understudy will discover challenges in centering and learning. Understudies ought to feel genuinely and truly sheltered and assented inside the study hall to develop and accomplish their maximum capacity. Maslow hypothesis likewise portrays that understudies must be indicated that they are evaluated and regarded in the study hall and the educators ought to likewise make an appurtenant domain. Understudies with low confidence ought to be guided to empower them understand their latent capacity. Vrooms Theory Vroom clarifies that an individual is propelled at the workstation realizing that their exertion will bring about the ideal result. Representatives are propelled by realizing that on the off chance that they increment their exertion will empower them being compensated. In numerous banks, people are urged to do their reserve funds. This will draw in an intrigue that they will be paid toward the year's end. For monetary rewards, it connotes that people need to comprehend that their expanded exertion will empower them to get the reward. Or then again, if no additional exertion is included, the individual will get a low reward. This involves making an equalization by making it attainable. Undertaking Management Approach The undertaking chief should go about as a worker head since he is the voice of the group. He/she ought to explain issues and guide the group fittingly. This incorporates tuning in to their assessments. Appropriate booking of work, guaranteeing approval and confirmation of the venture and constant improvement of the procedure. The director ought to guarantee responsibility, in light of trust, capacity to have gainful clash, duty and empowering the group. The capacity to illuminate clashes is likewise urgent. Empowering a helpful workplace and energize group working so as to have a profoundly performing group.

elements of music Sonata essays

components of music Sonata expositions In the late 1700's and mid 1800's the Baroque period offered route to the traditional time, presenting numerous progressive new logical disclosures and hypotheses. This definitely changed the people groups social perspectives and welcomed on the period of illumination. With this adjustment in social way of thinking came changes in melodic patterns. One of the most significant new patterns of the time was a progressively basic utilization of the sonata. During the Classical period, the sonata advanced into an increasingly confined job, and in doing as such, exemplified the new style of melodic structure for the time. The sonata started in Italy and step by step picked up prominence over the remainder of Europe. During the Baroque time frame the sonata was made out of a few move developments, in any case, in the Classical time it changed to a quick moderate style development, with every development made in one out of four structures mainstream during the Classical time frame. These structures comprised of sonata-allegro, rondo, ternary, and subject and varieties. Through history numerous attributes of the sonata have stayed unaltered; most sonatas have been instrumental music, without voice parts, outright music without program; show or divisional music, without social capacity; solo or orchestral compositions for one to four players, without or various execution of the parts; cyclic music, in two to four developments as opposed to one; and comprehensively imagined music, displaying probably the most expanded plans of supreme music(Newman 479). The sonata was played by, and composed for, novice ar tists who rehearsed and performed for gracious society in the solace of their own homes(Wright 196). The sonata is a sort of ambiance music, that picked up notoriety during the old style time. Sonata deciphers as, something played instead of it close cousin, the cantata, which signifies something sung. It was additionally during this time the console sonata developed from harpsichord and clavichord lastly, to the piano (Newman 485). During 1830s the prevalence o... <!

Data Flow Diagram

mywbut. com Data Flow Diagrams (DFDs) 1 mywbut. com Specific Instructional Objectives At the finish of this exercise the understudy will have the option to: †¢ Identify the exercises did during the organized investigation stage. Clarify what a DFD is. Clarify why developing DFDs are significant in showing up at a decent programming plan. †¢ Explain what an information word reference is. †¢ Explain the significance of information word reference. †¢ Identify whether a DFD is adjusted. Organized Analysis Structured examination is utilized to do the top-down disintegration of a lot of elevated level capacities portrayed in the difficult depiction and to speak to them graphically.During organized investigation, useful decay of the framework is accomplished. That is, each capacity that the framework performs is examined and progressively decayed into increasingly definite capacities. Organized examination method depends on the accompanying fundamental hidden standards: †¢ Top-down decay approach. Gap and vanquish standard. Each capacity is decayed autonomously. Graphical portrayal of the examination results utilizing Data Flow Diagrams (DFDs). Information Flow Diagram (DFD)The DFD (otherwise called an air pocket outline) is a various leveled graphical model of a framework that shows the diverse preparing exercises or capacities that the framework performs and the information trade among these capacities. Each capacity is considered as a preparing station (or procedure) that devours some information and creates some yield information. The framework is spoken to as far as the information to the framework, different preparing completed on these information, and the yield information produced by the framework. A DFD model uses an extremely set number of crude images [as appeared in fig. 5. 1(a)] to epresent the capacities performed by a framework and the information stream among these capacities. 2 mywbut. com External Entity Process Output Data Flow (a) Data Store number readnumber validatenumber information thing validnumber (b) information thing readnumber validatenumber validnumber number (c) Fig. 5. 1 (a) Symbols utilized for structuring DFDs (b), (c) Synchronous and nonconcurrent information stream Here, two instances of information stream that depict info and approval of information are thought of. In Fig. 5. 1(b), the two procedures are straightforwardly associated by an information stream. This implies the ‘validate-number’ procedure can begin simply after the ‘readnumber’ procedure had provided information to it.However in Fig 5. 1(c), the two procedures are associated through an information store. Consequently, the activities of the two air pockets are autonomous. The first is named ‘synchronous’ and the second one ‘asynchronous’. Significance of DFDs in a decent programming plan The primary motivation behind why the DFD method is so famous is presumably a direc t result of the way that DFD is an exceptionally straightforward formalism †it is easy to comprehend and utilize. Beginning with a lot of elevated level capacities that a framework plays out, a DFD model 3 mywbut. com progressively speaks to different sub-capacities. Truth be told, any various leveled model is easy to understand.Human mind is to such an extent that it can without much of a stretch see any progressive model of a framework †on the grounds that in a progressive model, beginning with an exceptionally straightforward and theoretical model of a framework, various subtleties of the framework are gradually presented through various chains of importance. The information stream graphing strategy likewise follows an exceptionally basic arrangement of instinctive ideas and rules. DFD is a rich demonstrating strategy that ends up being helpful not exclusively to speak to the consequences of organized examination of a product issue, yet additionally for a few different applications, for example, indicating the progression of archives or things in an organization.Data word reference An information word reference records all information things showing up in the DFD model of a framework. The information things recorded incorporate all information streams and the substance of all information stores showing up on the DFDs in the DFD model of a framework. An information word reference records the motivation behind all information things and the meaning of every single composite datum things as far as their part information things. For instance, an information word reference section may speak to that the information grossPay comprises of the segments regularPay and overtimePay. grossPay = regularPay + overtimePay For the littlest units of information things, the information word reference records their name and their type.Composite information things can be characterized regarding crude information things utilizing the accompanying information definition administrators: +: indicates sythesis of two information things, e. g. a+b speaks to information an and b. [,,]: speaks to determination, I. e. any of the information things recorded in the sections can happen. For instance, [a,b] speaks to either a happens or b happens. (): the substance inside the section speak to discretionary information which could possibly show up. e. g. a+(b) speaks to either a happens or a+b happens. speaks to iterative information definition, e. g. {name}5 speaks to five name information. name}* speaks to at least zero occasions of name information. speaks to comparability, e. g. a=b+c implies that a speaks to b and c. {}: =:/*/: Anything showing up inside/* and */is considered as a remark. 4 mywbut. com Example 1: Tic-Tac-Toe Computer Game Tic-tac-toe is a PC game in which a human player and the PC make elective proceeds onward a 3? 3 square. A move comprises of stamping beforehand plain square. The player who first places three back to back imprints alon g a straight line on the square (I. e. along a line, segment, or slanting) wins the game.As soon as either the human player or the PC wins, a message praising the victor ought to be shown. In the event that neither one of the players figures out how to get three back to back imprints along a straight line, however all the squares on the block are filled, at that point the game is drawn. The PC consistently attempts to dominate a match. show Tic-Tac-Toe Software 0 move Human Player (a) displayboard 0. 1 validatemove 0. 2 game move board result checkwinner 0. 4 playmove 0. 3 (b) Fig 5. 2 (a), (b) Level 0 and Level 1 DFD for Tic-Tac-Toe game depicted in Example 1 5 mywbut. comIt might be reviewed that the DFD model of a framework regularly comprises of a few DFDs: level 0, level 1, and so forth. Be that as it may, a solitary information word reference should catch all the information showing up in all the DFDs establishing the model. Figure 5. 2 speaks to the level 0 and level 1 DFDs f or the tic-tactoe game. The information word reference for the model is given beneath. Information word reference for the DFD model in Example 1 move: show: game: board: result: whole number/*number somewhere in the range of 1 and 9 */game+result board {integer}9 [â€Å"computer won†, â€Å"human won† â€Å"draw†] Importance of information dictionaryA information word reference assumes a significant job in any product improvement process as a result of the accompanying reasons: †¢ An information word reference gives a standard phrasing to every single pertinent datum for use by the specialists working in a venture. A steady jargon for information things is significant, since in enormous activities various specialists of the task tend to utilize various terms to allude to similar information, which pointless creates turmoil. The information word reference gives the examiner a way to decide the meaning of various information structures as far as their part co mponents. Adjusting a DFD The information that stream into or out of an air pocket must match the information stream at the following degree of DFD. This is known as adjusting a DFD. The idea of adjusting a DFD has been delineated in fig. 5. 3. In the level 1 of the DFD, information things d1 and d3 stream out of the air pocket 0. 1 and the information thing d2 streams into the air pocket 0. 1. In the following level, bubble 0. 1 is deteriorated. The disintegration is adjusted, as d1 and d3 stream out of the level 2 outline and d2 streams in. 6 mywbut. com (a) Level 1 DFD (b) Level 2 DFD Fig. 5. 3: A model demonstrating adjusted deterioration 7

Tips for Choosing a University

Tips for Choosing a University Tips For Carefully Choosing a University Tips For Carefully Choosing a University Whether you are currently, or soon to be in the process of selecting a postsecondary institution for the first time, or are already at one and are looking to take your studies elsewhere, choosing a university is not something to take lightly and should be carefully planned and thought out. This is a place where you will, presumably, be spending the next four years (at least) of your life. It is where you are going to be spending a tremendous amount of your (or someone else’s) money. The decision is likely going to be a life altering one, in ways that you have not, perhaps even cannot yet imagine. Taking the time to carefully evaluate your options is something you owe both present and future ‘you’. Below are some tips for choosing a university, so that you get the most out of your postsecondary experience. Choosing a university means looking at the rankings A study released by the website The Student Room in 2017 found that 1 in 5 university students regretted their choice of school. Twenty percent of university students feeling unsatisfied with the school they chose to study at is an alarmingly high number. It is also understandable. Most undergraduate students enter university at a time in their lives when they are, at best, not really sure what they want out of life, and more often than not, completely ignorant of the possibilities. Thankfully, for those willing to put a little effort in, there are a multitude of university ranking websites and organizations out there which put a lot of time into analyzing schools and curating lists based on certain factors often giving schools overall aggregate rankings. Take some time to peruse these sites while you are making your shortlist of schools. This brings us to our next tip: make a short list. Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket Many students, including current, new, and soon-to-be, make the mistake of selecting too few schools they are willing to study at. Often times schools are chosen because it’s where a close friend, or friends are studying, or it’s where a girlfriend or boyfriend is attending. The worst possible reason for choosing a school has to be its reputation as a “party school.” If you do anything, don’t choose a school because of the nightlife. All schools will end up having fun nightlife; it’s inevitable when so many young people get together. If you are deciding where to study and spend a very large amount of money, it is absolutely vital that you go through the shortlisting process. This means evaluating several schools you would like to study at (and, importantly, know you can get into) and coming up with an evaluation system that lets you narrow down your top ‘X’ number. You should take the time to submit careful applications to all those schools. The biggest mistake you can make is to either take whatever you can get (if you don’t have to), or hope you get into the one or two schools you chose. Look at the course content Choosing a university and deciding on the courses you want to enroll in go hand in hand. At the undergraduate level, who is teaching the course and the course material they have chosen for their syllabus is not as important as it is as the graduate level (though it can still totally make or break a course), but it is important to ask yourself if you really want to study at a given school. If you already have a general idea of the courses you wish to take, then all you have to do is look at the course description and review what the professor plans to teach. Spend some time reviewing both the course material and the professor themselves. Do some background research into both the person and the material. Do both seem interesting and compelling? Is this a course you are going to enjoy taking? Universities offer a wide variety of different courses, and employ different people, with different styles and objectives. Knowing more about those people and objectives will help you select the school with the courses that most appeal to you. When you do finally decide where you want to apply, there are services out there to help you polish and perfect your admission essays and application letters. Cost of living One of the unfortunate realities of postsecondary education is that many of the factors which either allow or prohibit you from studying at a given institution are out of your control. If you don’t have the good fortune to come from a family that is able to pay for your education, you are going to have to consider loans or working while studying (or both), as well as what you can afford. You might end up getting an offer from the best school, in the biggest, most expensive city in the country, and have to turn it down because living there is simply too costly. One of the most important things to keep in mind when choosing a university is how much financial hardship the decision is going to impose upon you. Take a city like Vancouver, Toronto, New York, or Sydney. All contain highly esteemed postsecondary institutions. All are some of the most desirable cities to live in in the entire world, but all require a large amount of money to complete a 4-year degree in. Almost twenty percent of students turn down offers from top schools every year because of financial reasons. It is not always an imprudent thing to do. University, at the end of the day, is an investment like any other, and should be evaluated just as shrewdly. Knowing where and what you want to study involves a lot of thoughtful, often painful deliberation and soul searching. Choosing a university can be stressful, and applying even more so, so get in touch with Homework Help Global and have a professional writer help you plan and execute your application process. References: Seltzer, R. (2017). “Turning down top choices.” Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved from: study-shows-how-price-sensitive-students-are-selecting-colleges Yorke, H. (2017). “One in five students regret their choice of university, study shows.” The Telegraph. Retrieved from: Tips for Choosing a University Tips For Carefully Choosing a University Tips For Carefully Choosing a University Whether you are currently, or soon to be in the process of selecting a postsecondary institution for the first time, or are already at one and are looking to take your studies elsewhere, choosing a university is not something to take lightly and should be carefully planned and thought out. This is a place where you will, presumably, be spending the next four years (at least) of your life. It is where you are going to be spending a tremendous amount of your (or someone else’s) money. The decision is likely going to be a life altering one, in ways that you have not, perhaps even cannot yet imagine. Taking the time to carefully evaluate your options is something you owe both present and future ‘you’. Below are some tips for choosing a university, so that you get the most out of your postsecondary experience. Choosing a university means looking at the rankings A study released by the website The Student Room in 2017 found that 1 in 5 university students regretted their choice of school. Twenty percent of university students feeling unsatisfied with the school they chose to study at is an alarmingly high number. It is also understandable. Most undergraduate students enter university at a time in their lives when they are, at best, not really sure what they want out of life, and more often than not, completely ignorant of the possibilities. Thankfully, for those willing to put a little effort in, there are a multitude of university ranking websites and organizations out there which put a lot of time into analyzing schools and curating lists based on certain factors often giving schools overall aggregate rankings. Take some time to peruse these sites while you are making your shortlist of schools. This brings us to our next tip: make a short list. Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket Many students, including current, new, and soon-to-be, make the mistake of selecting too few schools they are willing to study at. Often times schools are chosen because it’s where a close friend, or friends are studying, or it’s where a girlfriend or boyfriend is attending. The worst possible reason for choosing a school has to be its reputation as a “party school.” If you do anything, don’t choose a school because of the nightlife. All schools will end up having fun nightlife; it’s inevitable when so many young people get together. If you are deciding where to study and spend a very large amount of money, it is absolutely vital that you go through the shortlisting process. This means evaluating several schools you would like to study at (and, importantly, know you can get into) and coming up with an evaluation system that lets you narrow down your top ‘X’ number. You should take the time to submit careful applications to all those schools. The biggest mistake you can make is to either take whatever you can get (if you don’t have to), or hope you get into the one or two schools you chose. Look at the course content Choosing a university and deciding on the courses you want to enroll in go hand in hand. At the undergraduate level, who is teaching the course and the course material they have chosen for their syllabus is not as important as it is as the graduate level (though it can still totally make or break a course), but it is important to ask yourself if you really want to study at a given school. If you already have a general idea of the courses you wish to take, then all you have to do is look at the course description and review what the professor plans to teach. Spend some time reviewing both the course material and the professor themselves. Do some background research into both the person and the material. Do both seem interesting and compelling? Is this a course you are going to enjoy taking? Universities offer a wide variety of different courses, and employ different people, with different styles and objectives. Knowing more about those people and objectives will help you select the school with the courses that most appeal to you. When you do finally decide where you want to apply, there are services out there to help you polish and perfect your admission essays and application letters. Cost of living One of the unfortunate realities of postsecondary education is that many of the factors which either allow or prohibit you from studying at a given institution are out of your control. If you don’t have the good fortune to come from a family that is able to pay for your education, you are going to have to consider loans or working while studying (or both), as well as what you can afford. You might end up getting an offer from the best school, in the biggest, most expensive city in the country, and have to turn it down because living there is simply too costly. One of the most important things to keep in mind when choosing a university is how much financial hardship the decision is going to impose upon you. Take a city like Vancouver, Toronto, New York, or Sydney. All contain highly esteemed postsecondary institutions. All are some of the most desirable cities to live in in the entire world, but all require a large amount of money to complete a 4-year degree in. Almost twenty percent of students turn down offers from top schools every year because of financial reasons. It is not always an imprudent thing to do. University, at the end of the day, is an investment like any other, and should be evaluated just as shrewdly. Knowing where and what you want to study involves a lot of thoughtful, often painful deliberation and soul searching. Choosing a university can be stressful, and applying even more so, so get in touch with Homework Help Global and have a professional writer help you plan and execute your application process. References: Seltzer, R. (2017). “Turning down top choices.” Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved from: study-shows-how-price-sensitive-students-are-selecting-colleges Yorke, H. (2017). “One in five students regret their choice of university, study shows.” The Telegraph. Retrieved from:

Advantages and Disadvantages of Biometrics - Free Essay Example

ABSTRACT Organisations have goals and therefore acquire assets to ensure these goals are met and the continuity guaranteed. Financial sector while trying to promote convenient methods such as online banking and use of ATM for their customers to access their money strives to ensure only the right person has access to the account. Also, military and national security services store high sensitive and critical information that must only be accessed by specific individual thereby deploying security measures to keep this tradition. However, achieving these goals largely depends on securing and controlling the assets as documented which means only authorised individuals have access to these environments and eventually the assets. Sequel to the importance of access control, different security techniques have been deployed to safeguard these assets which ranges from PINs and passwords, ID cards, smart card est. Vulnerabilities to these methods have lead to the recent surge in biometrics industry as many believe this is the future. Reasons such that the physical presence of the authorized person is needed at the point of access and also, the fact that it is unique and almost impossible to duplicate emphasis the benefit of biometrics and explain its glooming popularity. However like any other security methods, biometrics has limitations and threats which can impact its effectiveness and efficiency. It is not suitable for every application and can be a very wrong choice for certain applications. Therefore, it i s essential to manage these limitations and threats properly to enhance the success factor of biometrics. Finally, it is important for any sector deploying biometrics to understand the various issues associated with biometrics such as privacy, standards and what the law requires of biometrics. CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION Organizations strive to secure their assets and provide means of controlling access to these assets. This process requires identification and authorization to ensure the right person is accessing the right asset. Over the years, traditional methods of authentication, mainly passwords and personal identification numbers (PINs) have been popularly used. Recently, swipe card and PINs have been deployed for more security since one is something you have and the latter something you know. However, these methods still have vulnerabilities as swipe card can be stolen. Also, bad management of passwords has left people writing them on papers and desks or simply choosing easy and general words for quick remembrance which expose the password to intruders. More recently, stronger identification and authorization technologies that can assure a person is who he claims to be are becoming prominent and biometrics can be classified to this category. Biometric technology makes use of a persons phy siological or behavioral characteristics in identification. Every human being is unique in nature and possesses physical parts completely different from any other person. The September 11, 2001 terrorist attack did not help security concerns as governments and organizations all around the world especially the border security agencies have greatly embraced this human recognition technology. As both private and public entities continue to search for a more reliable identification and authentication methods, biometrics has been the choice and considered the future. WHAT IS BIOMETRICS? Biometrics refers to the automatic identifications of a person based on his or her physiological or behavioral characteristics (Chirillo and Blaul 2003, p. 2). It is an authorization method that verifies or identifies a user based on what they are before authorizing access. The search for a more reliable authorization method to secure assets has lead to the revelation of biometrics and many organizations have shown interest in the technology. Two main types of biometrics have been used mainly physical and behavioral. A physical biometrics is a part of a persons body while, a behavioral biometric is something that a person does (Lockie 2002, p. 8). He added that although there are some more unusual biometrics which may be used in the future, including a persons unique smell, the shape of their ear or even the way they talk, the main biometrics being measured include fingerprints, hand geometry, retina scan, iris scan, facial location or recognition (all physical), voice recogniti on, signature, keystroke pattern and gait (Behavioral). However, it has been argued by Liu and Silverman (2001) that different applications require different biometrics as there is no supreme or best biometric technology. HISTORY OF BIOMETRICS According to Chirillo and Blaul (2003, p. 3) the term biometrics is derived from the Greek words bio (life) and metric (to measure). China is among the first known to practice biometrics back in the fourteenth century as reported by the Portuguese historian Joao de Barros. It was called member-printing where the childrens palms as well as the footprints were stamped on paper with ink to identify each baby. Alphonse Bertillon, a Paris based anthropologist and police desk clerk was trying to find a way of identifying convicts in the 1890s decided to research on biometrics. He came up with measuring body lengths and was relevant till it was proved to be prone to error as many people shared the same measurement. The police started using fingerprinting developed based on the Chinese methods used century before by Richard Edward Henry, who was working at the Scotland Yard. Raina, Orlans and Woodward (2003, p. 25-26) stated references to biometrics as a concept could be traced back to over a thousand years in East Asia where potters placed their fingerprints on their wares as an early form of brand identity. They also pointed Egypts Nile Valley where traders were formally identified based on physical characteristics such as eye color, complexion and also height. The information were used by merchant to identify trusted traders whom they had successfully transacted business with in the past. Kapil et al also made references to the Bible, first pointing to the faith Gileadites had in their biometric system as reported in The Book of Judges (12:5-6) that the men of Gilead identified enemy in their midst by making suspected Ephraimites say Shibboleth for they could not pronounce it right. The second reference is to The Book of Genesis (27:11-28) where Jacob pretended to be Esau by putting goat skins on his hands and back of his neck so his skin would feel hairy to his blind, aged fathers touch. This illustrates a case of biometric spoofing and false acceptance. They finally wrote Biometrics as a commercial, modern technology has been around since the early 1970s when the first commercially available device was brought to market (p. 26). HOW BIOMETRICS SYSTEMS WORK A biometric system is essentially a pattern-recognition system that makes a personal identification by determining the authenticity of a specific physiological or behavioral characteristics possessed by the user (Blaul 2003, p.3). Biometrics has so far been developed to work in two ways mainly verification and identification. Verification systems are designed to give answer to the question, Am I who I claim to be? by requiring that a user claim an identity in order for a biometric comparison to be performed. The user provides data, which is then compared to his or her enrolled biometric data. Identification systems gives answer to the question, who am I? and do not require a user to claim an identity as the provided biometric data is compared to data from a number of users to find a match (Nanavati 2002, p. 12). An illustration of a scenario using an identifying biometrics system is given below and thus gives an answer to the question Who am I? In October 1998 in the Unite d Kingdom, Newham Council introduced face recognition software to 12 town centre cameras with the sole purpose of decreasing street robbery. Images are compared against a police database of over 100 convicted street robbers known to be active in the previous 12 weeks. In August 2001, 527,000 separate faces were detected and operators confirmed 90 matches against the database. Where a face is not identified with any in the database, the image is deleted; if a match is found a human operator checks the result. The introduction of face recognition technology to Newham city centre saw a 34% decrease in street robbery. The system has not led directly to any arrests, which suggests that its effect is largely due to the deterrence/displacement of crime. The face recognition system has been widely publicised by the council and 93% of residents support its introduction (Postnote Nov 2001, p. 1). The case study below illustrates a verifying biometrics system and supply answers to the quest ion Am I who I claim to be? The US Immigration and Naturalization Service Passenger Accelerated Service System (INSPASS) has been introduced at eight airports in order to provide a quick immigration processing for authorised frequent flyers entering the US and Canada. On arrival at an airport, a traveller inserts a card that carries a record of their hand geometry into the INSPASS kiosk and places their hand on a biometric reader. A computer cross-references the information stored on the card at registration with the live hand geometry scan. The complete process takes less than 30 seconds. If the scans match, the traveller can proceed to customs; if not, travellers are referred to an Immigration Inspector. There are more than 45,000 active INSPASS users with, on average, 20,000 automated immigration inspections conducted each month (Postnote Nov 2001, p. 1). Verifying system is often referred to as a one-to-one process and generally takes less processing time compared to the i dentifying systems. This is due to the fact that in identifying systems, a user is compared to all users in the database (one-to-many). Verifying systems are also more accurate since they only have to match a users data against his or her stored data and do not need hundreds, thousands or even millions of comparisons like the identifying systems. However, it is important for an organization to decide the type appropriate for the applications. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY The research methodology designed for this dissertation is mainly the qualitative approach. A quantitative approach has been overlooked due to limited time as designing surveys, distribution take time and response time could not be predicted. Therefore, my effort will be concentrated on critically reviewing previous literatures in order to acquire an overview of, and intakes on the topic. For more details, Journals, Books, Publications, Documentaries and previous dissertations related to the topic will be reviewed, compared and analyzed. The objectives will be achieved by purely reviewing literatures and previous researches and the literatures critically analyzed by comparing information obtained from different sources. Findings, recommendations and conclusions will be made from the analysis. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY The main aim of this research focus on critically analysis of biometric security as an emerging and booming industry by examining the positives and negatives and providing ways of improving the method effectively and most importantly efficiently. Since biometrics applies to many applications, access control will be the main focus of this dessertation. Also, issues such as privacy, laws governing biometrics and standards will be examined. The main objectives of this research are; To review biometric security and issues related to it. To evaluate the threats, advantages and disadvantages of biometrics. To propose ways of improving the effectiveness and efficiency of biometrics from previous researches. CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW This chapter is aimed at critically reviewing and analysis of numerous works of researchers in the area of biometrics, threats to biometrics, advantages and disadvantages and ways of improving biometrics efficiency in access control. The effect of privacy (human rights) and the need to conform to biometrics standards will also be examined and reviewed. DEFINITION OF BIOMETRICS According to Jain, Ross and Pankanti (2006, p. 125), one great concern in our vastly interconnected society is establishing identity. Systems need to know Is he who he claims he is, Is she authorized to use this resource? or simply who is this? Therefore, a wide range of systems require reliable personal recognition schemes to either verify or identify of an individual seeking access to their services. The purpose of that scheme is to ensure that the rendered services are accessed by only the authorized and not any intruder or imposer (Ross 2004, p. 1). Biometric recognition, or simply biometrics, refers to the automatic recognition of individuals based on their physiological and, or behavioral characteristics (Jain, 2004 p. 1). Woodward (2003, p. 27) cited biometric industry guru Ben Millers 1987 biometric definition: Biometric technologies are automated methods of verifying or recognizing the identity of a living person based on a physical or behavioral characteristic. Shoniregun and Crosier (2008, p. 10) provided several definitions of biometrics which include: Biometrics is the development of statistical and mathematical methods applicable to data analysis problems in the biological science. Biometrics = identification/verification of persons based on the unique physiological or behavioral features of humans. Biometrics is the measurement and matching of biological characteristics such as fingerprint images, hand geometry, facial recognition, etc. Biometrics is strongly linked to a stored identity to the physical person. Nevertheless the various definitions, it can be seen that the science of biometrics is based on the fact that no two people are the same and this has a significant influence on its reliability and success factor. THE BIOMETRICS INDUSTRY According to Lockie (2002, p. 10), the biometric industry did not really get established until the middle of the twentieth century. The researchers at that particular time were investigating whether various human parts and characteristics, such as the iris or the voice, could be used to identify an individual. This was made public by publishing papers and as a considerable number of these strands of research began to form a piece, the biometrics industry as we know it these days was established. As organization search for more secure authentication methods for user access, e-commerce, and other security applications, biometrics is gaining increasing attention (Liu 2001, p.27). Higgins, Orlan and Woodward (2003, p. xxiii ), emphasized that even though biometrics have not become an essential part of all systems requiring controlled access, the emerging industry has come a long way from its modern founding in 1972 with the installation of a commercial finger measurement device o n Wall Street. He made reference to the highly respected MIT Technology Review called biometrics one of the top ten emerging technologies that will change the world. The growth in biometric industries is reflected in the numbers. The trio cited Rick Noton, the executive director of the International Biometric Industry Association (IBIA), who reported in the Biometrics 2002 Conference in London, United Kingdom, that the industrys trade association has indicated the surge in biometric revenues over recent years. From $20 million in 1996, it has increased to $200 million in 2001 and Norton believes they will increase as the years pass on significantly in 5 years time. Also, a forecast made by the International Biometric Group (IBG), which is a biometric consulting and integration firm located in New York City, estimate that biometric revenues totaled $399 million in 2000 and will increase to $1.9 billion by 2005. Both IBIA and IBG believe that the private sector will be responsib le for much of the growth. These give evidence of the relevance of biometrics in organizations in modern times. BIOMETRICS AND ACCESS CONTROL Over the years, biometrics has evolved rapidly and many vertical markets such as governments, transport, financial sectors, security, public justice and safety, healthcare and many more have adopted biometrics. Due to this wide range of users, biometrics has been deployed to many applications. Biometrics has been of high benefit to organization as they seek a reliable security method to safeguard assets. Fully understanding how biometrics work, it can be said that the ultimate aim of applying biometrics in the vertical markets listed above is to control access to a resource irrespective of the system used whether a verifying or an identifying process It has been stated by S. Nanavati, Thieme and R. Nanavati (2002, p. 14), that biometric systems are deployed for two primary purposes which are physical and logical access. LOGICAL VERSUS PHYSICAL ACCESS Physical access systems monitors, restricts, or grant movement of a person or object into or out of a specific area (Thieme 2002, p. 14). This could be implemented to control entry into rooms or even the main building. Popular examples are control towers, bank vaults, server rooms and many other sensitive rooms requiring controlled access. In physical access, biometrics replaces the use of keys, PIN codes access cards and security guards although any of these could be combined with biometrics as a complementation. Common physical access application is time and attendance. Thieme also gave a definition of logical access systems as one that monitor, restrict or grant access to data or information listing examples such as logging into a PC, accessing data stored on a network, accessing an account, or authenticating a transaction. In this case, biometrics replaces and can be designed to complement PINs, passwords and also tokens. Basic biometric functionality precisely acquiring and comparing of biometric data is often identical in both physical and logical systems. For example, the same iris scan data can be used for both doorway and desktop applications. Thieme explained that the only difference between the two is the external system into which the biometric functionality is integrated. The biometric functionality is integrated into a larger system. This applies for both physical and logical access system and actions such as access to any desktop application or access to a room via a doorway are effected by a biometric match. However, not every system can be classified as physical or logical access as the end result does not indicate access to data or a physical location and the result therefore may be to investigate more. An ATM secured by biometrics allows access to money, a physical entity. This is made possible by allowing the user logical access to his or her data. In the example above, the application is even difficult to classify as either physi cal or logical. Thieme (2002, p. 15) suggested that the distinction between physical and logical access systems is a valuable tool in understanding biometric. He noted that key criteria such accuracy, fallback procedures, privacy requirements, costs, response time and complexity of integration all vary effectively when moving from logical to physical access. WHAT ARE BIOMETRIC STANDARDS Stapleton (2003, p. 167) defined a standard in a general term as a published document, developed by a recognized authority, which defines a set of policies and practices, technical or security requirements, techniques or mechanisms, or describes some other abstract concept or model. The growth of the biometric industry has been relatively slowed by the absence of industry wide standards and this has also impeded various types of biometric deployment. Nanavati (2002, p. 277) stated that the relative youth of the technology in use, coupled with the disunified nature of the industry, has impacted the developments of standards resulting in a sporadic and frequently redundant standards. Nanavati also noted that the live-scan fingerprint imaging is the only segment of biometric industry with widely accepted and adopted standards. Due to this absence of biometric standards, some institutions have been concerned of being tied into technologies they actually believed as not mature or even d evelopmental. However in an effort to actively address the standards issue, the biometric industry has finalized some blueprints and the process of getting industries to accept these standards is ongoing WHY IS STANDARDIZATION NECESSARY? The high rate of biometric development and rapid growth in adoption of biometric technologies in recent years has resulted in ever-increasing levels of what is expected in terms of accuracy, adaptability, and reliability in an ever-wider range of applications. Due to the adoption of biometric technologies in large-scale national and international applications, involving a potentially unlimited range of stakeholders, Farzin Deravi (2008, p. 483) stated that it has become essential to address these expectations by ensuring agreed common frameworks for implementation and evaluation of biometric technologies through standardization activities. Majority of biometric systems, including both the hardware and software are made and sold by the owner of the patent at this stage in their development. They are being proprietary in numerous aspects including the manner in which biometric devices and systems as a whole communicate with applications, the method of extracting features from a bi ometric sample, and among many more, the method of storing and retrieving biometric data. This resulted in many companies in most cases, being wedded to a particular technology, once they agree to implement that particular technology. Nanavati (2002, p. 278) stated that in order to incorporate a new technology, the companies are required to rebuild their system from scratch upward, and in some cases duplicating much of the deployment effort. Deravi (2008 p. 483) noted that the need for interoperability of biometric systems across national boundaries has implied a rapid escalation of standardization efforts to the international arena, stating that the sense of urgency for the need for standardization has been the priority of internal security concerns. The industry wide or universal adoption of biometric standard will not make biometric technology interoperable at least, to the state where an old device can be replaced by a new device without rebuilding the system. However, Nan avati (2002 p. 278) argued the core algorithms through which vendors locate and extract biometric data are very unlikely to be interoperable or standardized, the reason being that these algorithms represents the basis of most vendors intellectual property. Numerous reasons are responsible for the motivation towards standardization. These include the desire for reducing the overall cost of deploying biometrics technologies and optimize the reliability of biometric systems, to reduce the risk of deploying solutions to biometric problems, to ensure in the area of encryption and file format, that the basic building blocks of biometric data management have been developed based on best practice by industry professionals. Nanavati (2002 p. 278) concluded that standards ensure that, in the future, biometric technology will be developed and deployed in accordance with generally accepted principles of information technology. EXISTING BIOMETRIC STANDARDS Shoniregun and Crosier (2008 p. 22) stated that the evolving interest and developments have made developments of standards a necessity with the sole aim of allowing compatibility of different systems. The detailed standards in the Biometrics Resource Centre (2002) report are summarised below: Common Biometric Exchange File Format (CBEFF): The Common Biometric Exchange File Format (CBEFF) sets a standard for the data elements essential in supporting biometric technology in a common way irrespective of the application involved or the domain in use. It makes data interchange between systems and their components easier, while promoting interoperability applications, programs as well as systems based on biometrics. INCITS MI-Biometrics Technical Committee: The committee which was established by the Executive Board of the International Committee for Information Technology standards (INCITS) with the responsibility to ensure a focused and reasonably comprehensive approach in the United States for the rapid development and approval of previous national and international generic biometric standards (Shoniregun ad Crosier 2008, p. 22) BioAPI Specification (Version 1.1): The BioAPI standard defines the architecture for biometric systems integration in a single computer system. (Deravi 2008, p. 490). The Bio API specification has been one of the most popular standards efforts since it was formed in April 1998 according to Nanavati (2002, p. 279). Nnavati stated that the standard was formed to develop an API that is both widely accepted and widely available while being compatible with various biometric technologies. Other general standards available are Human Recognition Module (HRS), ANSI/NIST-ITL 1-2000, American Association for Motor Vehicle Administration and American National Standards Institute (ANSI) which specifies the acceptable security requirements necessary for effective management of biometric data especially for the financial services industry. BRITISH BIOMETRICS STANDARDS The British Standards Institution (BSI) commenced work in June 2004 on biometrics standards and since then, has published according to Shoniregun and Crosier (2008, p. 24) a set of four new BS ISO/IEC 19794 STANDARDS, reported to have covered the science of biometrics, and using biological characteristics in identifying individuals. The objective of publishing these standards is to promote interoperability between the several products in the market. BS ISO/IEC 19784-2:2007: This standard defines the interface to an archive Biometric Function Provider (BFP). The interface assumes that the collected biometrics data will be managed as a database, irrespective of its physical realization. Crosier (2008, p. 24) defined the physical realization as smartcards, token, memory sticks, files on hard drives and any other kind of memory can be handled via an abstraction layer presenting a database interface.) BS ISO/IEC 19795-2:2006: According to Shoniregun (2008, p. 25), this standard provides recommendations and requirements on collection of data, analysis as well as reporting specific to two types of evaluation (scenario evaluation and technology evaluation). BS ISO/IEC 19795-2:2006 further specifies the requirements in the development and full description of protocols for scenario and technology evaluations and also, in executing and reporting biometric evaluations. BS ISO/IEC 24709-1:2007: ISO/IEC 24709-1:2007 specifies the concepts, framework, test methods and criteria required to test conformity of biometric products claiming conformance to BioAPI (ISO/IEC 19784-1). (www.iso.org). Crosier (2008, p. 25) stated ISO/IEC 24709-1:2007 specifies three conformance testing models which allows conformance testing of each of the BioAPI components mainly a framework, an application and a BSP. BS ISO/IEC 24709-2:2007: The standard BS ISO/IEC 247 defines a number of test assertions composed in the assertion language explicitly required in ISO/IEC 24709-1. The assertions allow a user to test the conformance of any biometric server producer (BSP) that claims to be a conforming implementation of that International Standard to ISO/IEC 19784-1 (BioAPI 2.0) (www.iso.org). BIOMETRICS AND PRIVACY The fact that biometric technologies are based on measuring physiological or behavioral and archiving these data has raised concerns on privacy risks, and also raised discussion on the role biometrics play when it comes to privacy. As stated by Nanavati (2002, p. 237), increase in the use of biometric technology in the public sector, workplace and even at home has raised the following questions: What are the main privacy concerns relating to biometric usage? What kinds of biometric deployments need stronger protections to avoid invading privacy? What biometric technologies are more prone to privacy-invasive usage? What kinds of protections are required to ensure biometrics are used in a non privacy-invasive way? Woodward (2003, p. 197) cited President Clintons speech in his commencement address at Morgan State University in 1997: The right to privacy is one of our most cherished freedomsWe must develop new protections for privacy in the face of new technological reality. Recently, Biometrics has been increasingly deployed to improve security and a very important tool to combat terrorism. Privacy issue is central to biometrics and many people believe that deploying biometrics poses a considerable level of risk to human rights, even though some are of the opinion that biometrics actually protect privacy. Human factors influence the success of a biometric-based identification system to a great extent. The ease as well as comfort in interaction with a biometric system contributes to how people accept it. Jain, Ross and Prabhakar (2004 p. 24) stated an example of a biometric system being able to measure the characteristic of a users without touching, such as those using voice, face, or iris, and concluded that it may be perceived to be a more user-friendly and hygienic system by the users. They added that on the other hand, biometric characteristics not requiring user participation or interaction can be recorded without the knowledge of the user, and this is perceived as a threat to human privacy by many individuals. According to Sim (2009, p. 81), biometrics compared to other security technologies has significant impacts on users privacy (Civil Liberties). It can protect privacy when deployed in an appropriate manner; but when misused, it can result in loss of privacy. ADVANTAGES OF BIOMETRIC OVER TRADITIONAL METHODS Password and PINs have been the most frequently used authentication method. Their use involves controlling access to a building or a room, securing access to computers, network, the applications on the personal computers and many more. In some higher security applications, handheld tokens such as key fobs and smart cards have been deployed. Due to some problems related to these methods, the suitability and reliability of these authentication technologies have been questioned especially in this modern world with modern applications. Biometrics offer some benefits compare to these authentication technologies. INCREASED SECURITY Biometric technology can provide a higher degree of security compared to traditional authentication methods. Chirillo (2003 p. 2) stated that biometrics is preferred over traditional methods for many reasons which include the fact that the physical presence of the authorized person is required at the point of identification. This means that only the authorized person has access to the resources. Effort by people to manage several passwords has left many choosing easy or general words, with considerable number writing them in conspicuous places. This vulnerability leads to passwords easily guessed and compromised. Also, tokens can be easily stolen as it is something you have. By contrast, it is almost impossible for biometrics data to be guessed or even stolen in the same manner as token or passwords. Nanavati (2002 p. 4) was of the opinion that although some biometric systems can be broken under certain conditions, todays biometric systems are highly unlikely to be fooled by a p icture of a face He further added that this is based on the assumption that the imposter has been able to successfully gather these physical characteristics which he concluded as unlikely in most cases. INCREASED CONVENIENCE One major reason passwords are sometimes kept simple is because they can be easily forgotten. To increase security, many computer users are mandated to manage several passwords and this increases the tendency to forget them. Card and tokens can be stolen and forgotten as well even though attaching them to keyholders or chains can reduce the risk. Because biometric technologies are based on something you are, it makes them almost impossible to forgot or manage. This characteristic allows biometrics to offer much convenience than other systems which are based on having to keep possession of cards or remembering several passwords. Biometrics can greatly simplify the whole process involved in authentication which reduces the burden on user as well as the system administrator (For PC applications where biometrics replaces multiple passwords). Nanavati (2002 p. 5) stated that Biometric authentication also allows for the association of higher levels of rights and privileges with a succ essful authentication. He further explained that information of high sensitivity can be made more readily available on a network which is biometrically protected than one which is password protected. This can increase convenience as a user can access otherwise protected data without any need of human intervention. INCREASED ACCOUNTABILITY Traditional authentication methods such as tokens, passwords and PINs can be shared thereby increasing the possibility of unaccountable access, even though it might be authorized. Many organizations share common passwords among administrators for the purpose of facilitating system administration. Unluckily, because there is uncertainty as to who at a particular point in time is using the shared password or token, accountability of any action is greatly reduced. Also, the user of a shared password or token may not be authorized and sharing makes it even hard to verify, the security (especially confidentiality and integrity) of the system is also reduced. Increase in security awareness in organizations and the applications being used has led to the need for strong and reliable auditing and reporting. Deploying biometrics to secure access to computers and other facilities eliminates occurrence such as buddy-punching and therefore provides a great level of certainty as to who access ed what computer at what point in time. DISADVANTAGES OF BIOMETRICS PROCESSES OF BIOMETRICS COMMON BIOMETRICS Biometric technologies can either be physiological or behavioral. Physical biometrics includes fingerprint, facial recognition, hand geometry, iris scan, and retina scan. Voice recognition, signature and keystroke are all examples of behavioral biometrics. The commonly used biometrics are briefly described below. FINGERPRINTING Fingerprints are the impressions of the papillary or friction ridges on the surfaces of the hand (Higgins 2003, p.45). He stated further fingerprints are the oldest and most widely recognized biometric markers. This statement is backed by Chirillo and Blaul (2003, p. 4) who stated that fingerprint recognition is one of the oldest biometric technologies. Lockie (2002, p. 16) also stated that fingerprints are the most commonly used biometric. Fingerprints have been used by humans for personal identification and access control for centuries. The matching accuracy using the biometric type has shown very high figure. Fingerprints of even identical twins are different and so are the prints on each finger of the same person which increases the rate of accuracy. According to postnote (2001), at a national level, automated fingerprinting is the only biometric used generally in the United Kingdom. An investigative project, which was to be completed by April 2002, was looking at the con cept of using a single biometric identifier, likely to be fingerprints by default, throughout the Criminal Justice System including police, prisons and courts. Prisons already take ink fingerprints from convicted prisoners. These can be compared against the police database as proof that the right person is being held. An automated system would give rapid confirmation of a persons identity and allow Information about individuals to be shared quickly and easily. Below are some strengths and weaknesses of fingerprinting according to Nanavati (2002 p. 45). Strengths of deploying fingerprint technology include: It can be used in a range of environment. It is a mature and proven core technology capable of high level accuracy. It employs ergonomic and easy-to-use devices. The ability to enrol multiple fingers can increase system accuracy and flexibility. Weaknesses of fingerprint technology include: Most devices are unable to enrol some small percentage of users. Performance can deteriorate over time. It is associated with forensic applications. FACE RECOGNITION Facial scan technology employs distinctive features of the human face in order to identify or verify a user. Face appearance is particularly, a compelling biometric because of its everyday use by nearly everyone as the primary source of recognizing other humans. It is more acceptable than most biometrics because of its naturalness. Faces have been institutionalized as a guarantor of identity in identity cards and passports since photography became prominent. However, Chirillo Blaul (2003 p. 55) stated that most face recognition and identification devices do not indeed perform a scan but instead, capture an image of the face in a video or picture format. He further added that the information is converted to a template or a data representation of the captured information, while the initial information is stored. After this process, subsequent scanned faces can then be compared to the original captured faces. Strengths and weaknesses of face recognition technology are given bel ow according to Nanavati (2002 p. 63). Strengths of facial recognition include: It is capable of leveraging existing image acquisition equipment. It is capable of searching against static image such as passports and drivers license photographs. It is the only biometric capable of operating without user cooperation. Weaknesses of this technology include: Matching accuracy is reduced by change in acquisition environment. Matching accuracy is also reduced by changes in physiological characteristics. Tendency of privacy abuse is high due to non-cooperative enrollment and identification capabilities. IRIS-SCAN Bolle et al (2004 p. 43) defined iris as the colored part of the eye bounded by the pupil and sclera. He added that iris has been purported as a universal biometric identifier with very good discriminating characteristics. Iris-scan technology uses the distinctive characteristics of the human iris in order identify or verify the identity of the users. Nanavati (2002 p. 77) stated that Iris-scan technology has the potential to play a major or large role in the biometric marketplace if real-world systems as well as solutions meet the theoretical promise of this technology. He further added that Iris-scan technology has been successfully deployed in high-security physical access applications, ATMs and also kiosks for banking and travel applications. The technology is also being positioned for desktop usage. Nanavati (2002) stated some strengths and weaknesses of Iris-scan technology. Strengths of Iris-scan technology: It has the potential for exceptionally high levels of accuracy. It is capable of reliable verification as well as identification. It maintains stability of characteristics over a lifetime frame. Weaknesses of Iris-scan technology: It has a propensity for false rejection. Acquisition of the images requires moderate attentiveness and training. Some users exhibit a certain degree of discomfort with eye-based technology. A proprietary acquisition device is required for deployment. VOICE RECOGNITION; VOICE SCAN According to Chirillo Blaul (2003, p. 201), Voice recognition actually s comprised of two different types of technology which are voice scan and speech recognition. They explained further that voice-scan is deployed to authenticate a user based on his or her voice characteristics; while on the other hand, speech recognition is used for the technological comprehension of spoken words. Voice-scan technology makes use of the distinctive aspects of the voice to identify or verify the identity of users. Voice-scan is sometimes taken as speech recognition, a technology that works by translating what a user is saying (the process in speech recognition is unrelated to authentication). Nanavati (2002, p. 87) described voice-scan technology as one that verifies the identity of the user who is speaking. Bolle et al (2003, p. 40) stated that similar to face appearance, voice-scan (also known as voice recognition) is often used due to its prevalence in human communication and its day to day use. They further added that voice is a behavioral biometric but it depends on some underlying physical traits, which govern the type of speech signals we are able and likely to utter. Examples of these physical traits are the fundamental frequency (which is a function of the vocal tract length), cadence, nasal tone. Nanavati (2002, p. 87) stated the strengths and weaknesses of voice-scan. Strengths of voice-scan technology: It is capable of leveraging telephony infrastructure. It effectively layers with other processes such as speech recognition and verbal passwords. It generally lacks the negative perceptions associated with other biometrics. Weaknesses of voice-scan technology: It is potentially more susceptible to replay attacks than other biometrics. Its accuracy is challenged by low-quality capture devices, ambient noise, etc. The success of voice-scan as a PC solution requires users to develop new habits. The large size of the template limits the number of potential applications. HAND-SCAN Hand -scan is one of the most established biometric technologies. It has been in use for years in several applications especially for verification of individuals. According to Nanavati (2002, p. 99), hand-scan technology make use of the distinctive parts of the hand particularly, the height and the width of the back of the hand as well as the finger. Hand-scan is more of an application specific solution than majorities of biometric technologies and is used exclusively for physical access and also, time and attendance applications. Although hand-scan geometry biometrics is still a technology that is growing slowly, Chirillo Blaul (2003, p. 145) stated that estimates forecast revenues to increase to approximately $50 million in 2005, which is approximately 2 to 5 percent of the whole biometric market. They gave primary reason for the minimal forecast as limited usages and aptness mainly for access control and time and attendance applications. Nanavati (2002, p. 99) stated the strengths and weaknesses of hand-scan technology. Strengths of hand-scan technology: It is able to operate in challenging environments. It is an established, reliable core technology. It is generally perceived as non intrusive. It is based on relatively stable physiological characteristics. Weaknesses of hand-scan technology: It has limited accuracy. The form factor limits the scope of potential applications. The ergonomic design limits usage by certain populations. Chirillo Blaul (2003, p. 146) stated cost as a weakness stating that approximately, hand-scan reader cost $1,400 to $2000, placing the devices towards the high end of the physical security spectrum. WHERE NOT TO USE BIOMETRICS Biometrics offer great amount of benefits in safeguarding systems and is perceived as more reliable than other security techniques (traditional security methods). However, biometric technologies are not the perfect security to be deployed for every application and in some cases biometric authentication is just not the right solution. One of the major challenges facing the biometric industry is defining those environments in which biometrics offer the strongest benefits to both individuals and institutions, and then showing that the benefits of deployment outweigh the risk as well as the costs (Nanavati 2002, p. 7).

The Safer Guides Are Self Assessment Tools And...

The SAFER Guides are self-assessment tools and recommendations for healthcare organizations related to safe use of electronic medical records (EMR). It is important for organizations that have EMRs to perform frequent self-assessments to ensure they are staying current with changes in technology, clinical practice standards, regulations and policies (DHHS, 2009). The recommended practices in the SAFER Guides are intended to be used for all EHR users, but the uniqueness of organizations will impact the way they implement a particular practice. The SAFER Guides are intended to help deal with safety issues created by the dynamic and fluid conditions that healthcare organizations function in. My organizations’ self-assessment was performed using the SAFER Guidelines for Patient Identification. The organization met 11 of 14 of the Patient Identification Guidelines. There were three areas that we had deficits in which included: #5 Not having â€Å"check digit† software incorporated in the medical record, #6 automatic warning for user when first and last name are the same, and #14 –Regular monitoring for patient ID errors. The use of â€Å"check digit† software is an automated process that is based on an algorithm program that detects single-digit errors and all transposition errors involving two adjacent digits (DHHS, 2009). An automatic warning such as Name Alerts is only partially functional. This box signifies caution for the user to verify the pt. ID before providing treatment, butShow MoreRelatedIn This Paper, The Importance Of Creating A Main Goal Of1715 Words   |  7 PagesIn this paper, the importance of creating a main goal of Organizational Behavior in an organization, will help them succeed and improve in a healthy hospital environment. 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