Fingerprint ID? Boring. Facial recognition? Meh….
If you’re looking for authentication capabilities that are sure to turn some heads, look no further than New York’s University of Birmingham. A research team at the school has begun to develop technology that uses the human heartbeat as a sign-in method. The team used electrocardiogram signals to encrypt and access patients’ medical records. Every ECG signal is unique for each person and is based on the physiology of the heart, including its valve orientation, size, and shape. While plenty of mobile technology already tracks and monitors heart activity (think Fitbit), this development converts heart rate into a unique bio-metric activity, to trigger log-ins, IoT activity, and more.
“There have been so many mature encryption techniques available, but the problem is that those encryption techniques rely on some complicated arithmetic calculations and random key generations,” said Zhanpeng Jin, a co-author of the paper titled “A Robust and Reusable ECG-based Authentication and Data Encryption Scheme for eHealth Systems.”
One issue to note, is that because people experience moments of irregular activity when tired or afraid, this could interfere with the reliability of the system’s authentication process. So just as a heads-up, you might not be able to get into your house if you’re being chased by an ax-murderer…
A wearable device called the Nymi Band is already using heart rate authentication, as well as Apple’s Touch ID. The device transports the bio-metric key over Bluetooth allowing it to be applicable with a number of different applications and devices. Because eye-scanning and fingerprint detection have quickly become common on smartphones and other mobile devices, heart-rate technology will need to move quickly if it’s going to establish itself as a reliable authentication standard.