Biometrics to be installed on 600 million mobile devices by 2021
The use of multiple biometrics in mobile devices is set to rise more than three-fold, to 600 million by 2021, according to data from Juniper Research. The study said the growing market could lead to greater demand for facial and voice recognition, which does not need dedicated technology. The report also said that, although biometrics offered a convenient method of shifting from identification to verification, research author James Moar warned they need to have "higher levels of protection".

More than 600m mobile devices worldwide will include biometric authentication within the next five years, up from 190m in 2016, with demand for methods that involve less hardware raising the profile of solutions such as voice and facial recognition, a report from Juniper Research says.

Multiple biometrics will become part of consumers’ mobile experience in the near future, the study Mobile Biometrics: Consumer Markets, Opportunities & Forecasts 2016-2021 says.

Technologies that do not require dedicated hardware, as fingerprinting does, will grow new audiences as biometric security penetrates markets with lower-tier smartphones. Fingerprinting will remain common in more affluent regions though, the report says.

It also suggests use cases for biometrics will shift from identification to verification, as the need for better security of the biometric itself increases.

Data control

“While biometrics offer an increased amount of security and convenience, they need higher levels of protection,” says research author James Moar.

“Establishing best practices for storage and transmission of newer biometrics will be key to ensuring consumer control over the security of these most personal data.”

The boom in biometric authentication was highlighted last month by a Frost & Sullivan report which stated one in three new cars will feature some form of biometric feature by 2025.

Meanwhile, a Mastercard survey reported in September that customers would rather use biometrics than PIN codes to secure mobile payments, with fingerprint recognition technology proving the most popular method.

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