Intel Aims at Access Control, Financial Services with Biometric Facial Recognition Module

“On the issue of privacy and data security, the company noted that the biometric data collected would be stored on the device itself, helping to ensure that it can’t be shared with third parties or hacked from remote servers.”

Amid this year’s virtual Consumer Electronics Show, Intel has announced a new facial recognition device aimed at a number of potential applications in areas ranging from access control to banking to healthcare.

Part of the company’s RealSense line of 3D cameras, the new RealSense ID will be offered as a circuit board or a compact, plug-and-play module. The company says its solution is highly resistant to spoofing, with a false detection rate of one in a million.

In announcing RealSense ID, Intel was careful to address common points of criticism with respect to today’s sophisticated facial recognition technologies. On the issue of privacy and data security, the company noted that the biometric data collected would be stored on the device itself, helping to ensure that it can’t be shared with third parties or hacked from remote servers.

As for the increasingly prominent issue of racial bias in face biometrics, Intel asserted that its algorithm has been tested on subjects representing a range of skin types and nationalities, and that it works with users of all complexions. That would seem to echo Apple’s approach to training its own 3D facial recognition system on a diverse set of subjects in order to reduce or eliminate bias.

In its announcement, Intel said it could bring sophisticated facial recognition capabilities to smart locks, Point of Sale terminals, ATMs, and kiosks. But the company also pointed to broader sectors in which “companies need technology they can trust,” including healthcare, finance, and access control.

The RealSense ID F455 moudle is slated to launch on March 1 with a price tag of $99, while a ten-pack of the F450 board will cost $750. Both solutions are now available for preorder.

Sources: Gizmodo, VentureBeat

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January 6, 2020 – by Alex Perala