ZDNet UK / News and Analysis / Security / Security Management

Jelly babies dupe fingerprint security

By , GameSpot Europe, 16 May, 2002 16:03

Daily Newsletters

Sign up to ZDNet UK's daily newsletter.

Topics

Biometric, fingerprint security fake forgery hack gelatin

NEWS
A Japanese researcher claims to have found a way to fool fingerprint scanners up to 80 percent of the time, using household materials and a little lateral thinking. According to the security newsletter Crypto-Gram, Tsutomu Matsumoto from Yokohama National University has evolved a technique that takes casts from fingers and builds fake digits from gelatin -- the stuff of jelly babies. With care, he says, all 11 of the current fingerprint scanning technologies he tested give a false positive 80 percent of the time using the fraudulent jelly extremity. Anyone can do this, says the researcher. First, take some free-molding plastic, obtainable from hobby stores. Take a cast of your finger. Once the plastic has hardened, pour in gelatin, available in sheets from grocery stores, and let it set. Optionally, you can then hollow out the fake finger and slip it over your own, bringing it up to body temperature for sensors that check that; you can also moisten it slightly to give it the same conductivity and capacitance as real flesh. Matsumoto also points out that if challenged by a security guard, you can eat the evidence. In a more practical vein, Matsumoto has demonstrated a variation that works from fingerprints left on glass or other surfaces. First, he enhances it with cyanoacrylate adhesive -- superglue -- which is a standard technique used by forensic specialists to make prints visible. Then he takes a picture with a digital camera, enhances the contrast in PhotoShop and prints it on a transparency. He then uses this to etch a photosensitive copper-plated printed circuit board -- widely used by electronic engineers and hobbyists. This produces a 3D relief map of the original fingerprint, which can be then used to create a cast. The rest is as before. Bruce Schneier, editor of Crypto-Gram, points out that Matsumoto is not a professional faker but a mathematician and conducted his experiments in what was in effect a kitchen environment. If he can achieve a reliable 80 percent hit rate, Scheier says, even semi-professionals can do much, much more and the results are enough to scrap all fingerprint recognition systems immediately.
For all security-related news, including updates on the latest viruses, hacking exploits and patches, check out ZDNet UK's Viruses and Hacking News Section. Have your say instantly, and see what others have said. Go to the Security forum. Let the editors know what you think in the Mailroom.

Related stories

British airlines test eye scans

Frequent fliers: The biometric guinea pigs

Banks look at face recognition for ATMs

Data leaks cost Midlothian a record £140k fine

Google-backed DMARC system aims to block phishers

Post your comment

In order to post a comment you need to be registered and logged in.

You can also log in with Facebook. Log in or create your ZDNet UK account below

  • Login

Will not be displayed with your comment

By signing up for this service, you indicate that you agree to our Terms and Conditions and have read and understood our Privacy Policy. Questions about membership? Find the answers in the Community FAQ

Get ZDNet UK's daily newsletter

Enter your email address to sign up

ZDNet UK Live

JCB33

How dare film makers, artists or anybody that invests in creativity stop us pirating their works for free. I want to be able to walk into my local...

1 hour ago by JCB33 on ACTA stumbles in Germany
Moley

@GrueMaster. I prefer horses for courses rather than one size fits all. I, and I suspect most other computer users, do not really wish to have...

3 hours ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
greycynic

The product that scares me every time I have to use it is the Office 2007 version of Excel. The first bug that I found was applying the median...

3 hours ago by greycynic on Ten flawed products that derail productivity
GrueMaster

Nice review and very informative. One thing I'd like to add (in reply to whs001's 1st question), the main reason to have the same interface from...

5 hours ago by GrueMaster on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Frederick Wrigley

I'be been using Mint 12 since the RC came out, and I am far more happy with the Cinnamon, the Mate, and, yes (with extensions), theGnome 3...

6 hours ago by Frederick Wrigley via Facebook on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
bdantas

Excellent article. One small correction, though--although a fresh installation of Linux Mint 12 will, indeed, provide the user with a version of...

6 hours ago by bdantas on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Alan Ralph

In related news, the ISPs club together to get the members of the Home Affairs Select Committee (ya goofed on that part, ZDNet UK) copies of "The...

7 hours ago by Alan Ralph via Facebook on MPs urge ISPs to take down terrorist material
Alan Ralph

In related news, the ISPs club together to get the members of the Home Affairs Select Committee (ya goofed on that part, ZDNet UK) copies of "The...

7 hours ago by Alan Ralph via Facebook on MPs urge ISPs to take down terrorist material
Moley

For Gnome 2 die-hards, it is possible to add icons to the bottom panel (or top top panel, if you prefer) which provide the exact Gnome 2...

8 hours ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
ramwellian

Your comments would seem pretty naive and immature. Your 'solution' appears to be, "gee, let's all just give in to the hackers and give them...

8 hours ago by ramwellian on Cloud computing security: no more oxymoron?
BugStalker

"Interesting thought ... If you installed Win7 as a dual boot on a machine that previously only had Linux, and it wrecked your Linux installation,...

8 hours ago by BugStalker on Windows 7 Declares War on GRUB
whs001

This is an excellent summary of Ubuntu and Mint and the interface differences between them. Most such articles take a very partisan position for...

8 hours ago by whs001 on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Moley

@ewallace. Not so clear. Anyone can obtain the text, for example from here http://www.ustr.gov/webfm_send/2379. I support ACTA so long as it and...

9 hours ago by Moley on ACTA: Facts, misconceptions and questions
45283

I think WinRT is fantastic. I just wish it was an option for people that didn't want to go through Microsoft's App Store with its attendant...

12 hours ago by 45283 on Why Windows 8 needs architectural hygiene for WOA
Burn-IT

Nine people? £30m? Who's back pocket is that lot going in? And IF they say it is for new buildings, what about all the ones the government has...

13 hours ago by Burn-IT on Police set to launch three £30m e-crime hubs
ewallace

Just to be clear, nobody knows what is in the text of ACTA, here is a photograph of the text of ACTA http://twitpic.com/8h9iju as submitted to the...

13 hours ago by ewallace on ACTA: Facts, misconceptions and questions
fgvrg56

Unfortunately main issue is that ASUS is refusing to accept that they make some mistake on this version of asus Transformer prime. 1 - GPS sensor...

14 hours ago by fgvrg56 on Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime Wi-Fi & GPS problems?
Ben Woods

@Marcus A fair question. Just talked with Archos which said it was working on an announcement for next week....

15 hours ago by Ben Woods on Archos confirms G9 Ice Cream Sandwich update schedule
Marcus Karlsson

Any update on this, considering the claimed "first week of February"?

16 hours ago by Marcus Karlsson via Facebook on Archos confirms G9 Ice Cream Sandwich update schedule
apexwm

Bill Goodrich : Just as al_langevin pointed out, with Windows Server 2008 there is no Services for Macintosh anymore. It's gone, not available....

1 day ago by apexwm on Windows Server 2008 drops the ball for Mac compatibility

Latest in Security Management

Data leaks cost Midlothian a record £140k fine

Google-backed DMARC system aims to block phishers

Ten ways to take the sting out of IT disasters

Featured white papers

2012 Olympics: Is your business prepared?

Symantec.cloud

2012 Olympics: Is your business prepared?

The Olympics are coming to London, and this factsheet can help businesses to get ready for the... Read more

10 safety tips for business in 2012

Symantec.cloud

10 safety tips for business in 2012

From cloud computing to remote working, your business should consider these ways to keep your business secure as traditional IT... Read more

Keeping safe from organised cybercrime

Symantec.cloud

Keeping safe from organised cybercrime

As cyber-criminals become increasingly coordinated in their cross-medium attacks, a solid, communicating and... Read more

Inside ZDNet UK

A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

2012 Predictions: VCE FastPath, VI SAN Probe & Hadoop

2012 Predictions: VCE FastPath, VI SAN Probe & Hadoop

BlackBerry Bold 9790

BlackBerry Bold 9790

Case study: How cloud enables growth

Case study: How cloud enables growth

Ten factors that make Ubuntu 11.10 a hit

Ten factors that make Ubuntu 11.10 a hit

Toshiba Portégé Z830-10P Review

Toshiba Portégé Z830-10P Review

BT's archive: Pictures from the vault

BT's archive: Pictures from the vault