Commercial biometrics system continues to show growth in years to come. The CAGR for the global biometrics system market is reported at an impressive 16.3% and the main factor for this prediction comes from strong support by the government worldwide to embrace biometrics system deployment in departments and organizations. The increasing demand for better security to combat unauthorized access and attendance fraud is also another factor contributing to the growth. The fact that biometrics is suitable and applicable to varied sectors which includes government, military, transport, logistics, safety & security, healthcare, banking, and so forth, will definitely continue to contribute in the growth as well. Adoption of the biometrics market in smartphone, PCs, and banks also helps to propel the growth of the biometrics market.

Based on the top findings of the IBM Security’s new “Future of Identity Study,” having surveyed nearly 4,000 adults around the globe, Biometrics is becoming mainstream. The study found that 67% of respondents are comfortable using biometrics authentication today, while 87 percent say they’ll be comfortable with these technologies in the near future. And, Millennials are moving beyond passwords. While 75 percent of millennials (respondents between the ages of 20 and 36) are comfortable using biometrics today, less than half are still using complex passwords and 41 percent reuse passwords to access numerous accounts. Older generations showed more care with password creation but were less inclined to adopt biometrics and multi-factor authentication. (Reference: https://securityintelligence.com/new-ibm-study-consumers-weigh-in-on-biometrics-authentication-and-the-future-of-identity/)

The rosy outlook on biometrics has provided industry players with a promising future, however, complacency has no place in this competitive market. For a brand to stay relevant, it needs to elevate the offerings in order to serve the demands of the current and future market. Due to the growing demands from the government sector, it’s a pressing matter for manufacturers to start offering mammoth-capacity options or solutions to fulfill the huge requirements of the projects. And, with these gigantic-sized government projects, the accompanying solution has to cater to the large requirements and perform at its best or risk major hiccups in its implementation. In addition, in other industries, employee mobility is becoming a norm, and the mounting adoption of mobile solutions in the market has created new demands on features such as data centralization, flexible system operation, real-time data & reports, fast respond, additional mobile apps for mobility and the list of requirements is growing. Therefore, geared towards the future, TimeTec will be launching the Face ID X with bigger capacity and better performance to fulfill a larger installation, and on top, TimeTec has been preaching cloud since 2014 in preparation for the incoming demands for flexible and subscription-based solutions. 

TimeTec TA caters for cloud-based time attendance solution for the workforce that offers not only integration with FingerTec biometrics, but it is also loaded with other clocking options such as GPS clocking, Wifi clocking, Beacon clocking and NFC for a versatile attendance clocking system. TimeTec TA is gaining traction in the market due to its effectiveness, affordability and the addition of its mobile solution that comes with the system as a value-added feature. TimeTec TA elevates biometrics solution to another level which enables an array of possibilities in the deployment. 

For access control, TimeTec Access, a mobile authentication cloud-based door access system, is THE solution. With the combination of biometrics, IoT hardware, and cloud solution, TimeTec Access will enable more effective management of access control straight from any Web Browser and operation through Smartphone App. The implementation of TimeTec Access with biometrics will provide companies with remote monitoring ability and instant data & report at all times, and in a long run improves the ROI for the overall door access management.

Biometrics is here to stay but in order to stay relevant and forward-looking, a brand has to provide a Unique Selling Proposition (USP) and be able to satisfy the current requirements and more. Explore www.fingertec.com to find out more. 

Technology has always brought about change to various industries, and one of the industries impacted by technology is indeed Access Control. The industry has been dominated by smart card deployment and later on, disrupted by biometrics technology, freeing consumers from physical keys dependency. And recently, its development has been more focused towards the wireless market with the adoption of smartphone credential, Bluetooth technology and the usage of Near Field Communication technology is omnipresent in today’s default smartphones.

According to a research, it is projected that by the year 2020, the number of smartphone users will hit 6.1 billion from the current 2.5 billion users worldwide. There is without a doubt a fast growing and maturing wireless market out there, signalling the importance of mobile device integration for the existing market and beyond, for all kinds of system deployment. When almost everything can be accomplished via the smartphone ’s interconnectedness, access control is left without a choice but to explore its advantages.

Understanding Access Control as a Service, ACaaS

The trend now is no longer only about convenience in the way we open doors, it has been extended to the convenience of managing the entire spectrum of access control system. Adoption of mobile credential allows door owners to keep digital records of all access activities occurring in his/her premises and on top of that, smartphone credential can be assigned securely via temporary passes issued for certain individuals and for a limited time only, complete with detailed access records.

And the more important factor that enables all these is the introduction of Access Control as a Service or ACaaS.

Take TimeTec Access, for example, this solution offers a more simplified version of hardware that has to remain on site; however, the software and all servers will be removed from the customer’s premises and will be managed through cloud servers, with smartphones acting as a major access credential replacing cards and fingerprints. Access credentials or traditionally known as keys to open doors has evolved significantly and with the power of cloud computing and mobile technology; the credential management for physical access control system has been shifted to a smartphone without any hassle because let’s be honest, people are stuck with their smartphones most of the time these days.  

Along with smartphone comes access control Apps that are taking over major access control features effortlessly. Important controller features like interlocking, anti-passback and global anti-passback and many more are now switched over to the Application in the smartphones for convenience and better control. Smartphone credential also offers viewing of activity logs and much more in real-time as well as with so much convenience; it is even possible for a mere normal user to view his/her own activity logs through his/her smartphone, and users can preset all access levels and rights via their individual smartphone.

Another important issue handled by the ACaaS would be data security because the server facilities are located remotely and renowned data centres usually are heavily guarded with video surveillance and other tight security measures to ensure that the data is far from harm and penetration attempts. Cloud-based system allows authorized individuals to access and control from anywhere in the world through the standard internet communications protocols, WiFi or Ethernet infrastructure and using cloud-based access control system, users can utilize the Web Browser or Mobile App to manage access or unlock doors from a distance. By using smartphone access credentials to unlock doors, the Cloud-Based Door Controller authenticates on location and allows access.

Every event at every access point provides a communication report to the Cloud Server allowing monitoring of all facilities in real-time seamlessly.  While traditional access control system usually needs to station individual server in each premise for the company that operates in multiple locations, the cloud system can centralize and manage multiple locations’ access control system from one centralized location only, providing a truly convenient modern solution. All communications from TimeTec Access Control System Server are secured with 256-bit AES encryption and through the use of Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol. SSL provides endpoint authentication and communication privacy – preventing eavesdropping, tampering and message forgery. The cloud-based system is built on an open-source platform that is flexible.

Be Secured Without Putting A Hole in Your Account

You can implement the solution at the smallest scale, like managing a single door opening at a single location or you can add hundreds of locations and thousands of doors using one system to provide a globally distributed multi-location access control system. The cloud-based access control system does not require huge capital investments because the cloud solution usually offers a monthly or annual subscription pricing model. Hence, the cost of deployment has been reduced to a bare minimum with no hefty contract obligations.

TimeTec Access deployment incurs a low total investment particularly for facilities with low door count because you neither need to invest in any servers nor the maintenance that comes with it. TimeTec Access is cloud-based, which makes implementation of this solution at various locations with centralized control feasible with minimal equipment. You only pay for what you use, and the price does not fluctuate for a small deployment or a large one because the costs for a cloud-based solution like Time Access are moved from capital expenses to operating expenses.

TimeTec Access has a highly reliable data centres to maintain entry/exit logs and we maintain a rules-based alert to ensure exception situations get addressed appropriately and in time. TimeTec Access allows system management from anywhere in the world and from any locations. You can manage thousands of credentials and doors, create logical groups across physical locations and manage access schedules in real-time seamlessly and without any worry. Gone were the days where one lost credential could cause havoc and require physical presence to solve it. Application and data in TimeTec Access are hosted in physically secure co-location facilities and we have redundant servers to ensure better uptime and no data loss. All communications are highly encrypted and TimeTec Access deploys our patent-pending two-layer authentication, first in-App verification and followed by a BLE authentication for a secure access.

Using smartphone as a credential for access control is just the beginning of what’s to come. Developers are using the technology to input more features, making the application more sophisticated and secure than ever and some allow access via proximity,  some tap on voice control, and the possibilities are endless.