It's about ROI (return on investment), after all. But it's also about people.
Yes, the idea that your identity will be, captured on camera and put in a data base may set off the ultra liberal and conservative elements within our society. But the real issue here is not for those who worry about the government monitoring your activities; where you are going or what you are buying. This is about protection--the real issue is what it would cost both you, in your personal life, and the government, in its attempt to be as secure and fraud-free as possible, not to employ this technology?I agree with the author's premises. Username/Password as an ID management technique is pretty far past its sell-by date when it comes to managing access to anything the user considers important. The status quo is unsustainable.
There is substantial ROI in adopting biometric ID management techniques. Biometrics will not be foisted upon an unwilling populace. They will be demanded by informed people who wish to conduct their affairs in a more secure and efficient environment.
I do, however, disagree with some of the author's conclusions.
There is no "magic bullet" biometric modality: not iris; not face; not voice; not finger; palm vein, DNA, etc. -- nor will there be for the foreseeable future. They all have limitations flowing from the environment in which they are deployed and the individuals they must serve.
I'm also very sensitive about overpromising and underdelivering the promise of biometric identity management. This derives from our experience of the damage done to the reputation of the biometrics industry as a result of such behavior in the past. Following 9-11, there was no shortage of those claiming to be able make all identity management dreams come true through biometrics. They raised big money and a lot of people got burned. Not all of this was unpredictable or solely the industry's fault. A lot of people who might have known better threw a lot of money around and someone was going to be there to catch it. But real damage was done.
The author of the linked piece is also quoted in this Fast Company article.
See also: Iris Biometrics in the news
