Unlocking face authentication playbook

• by MSC
• Oct 21, 2024
• 1 min
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Aadhaar, India’s unique identification system, has become integral to identity verification and service delivery for over 1.4 billion people. Evolving from fingerprint and iris authentication, the system introduced face authentication in 2018, offering a contactless, user-friendly, and highly accurate method. With increasing smartphone penetration and AI advancements, face authentication is revolutionizing sectors like banking, government services, and travel. However, challenges such as device compatibility and security risks remain. The UIDAI continues to enhance this technology to ensure secure and efficient service delivery across industries. This playbook provides key insights and workflows for integrating face authentication.

Aadhaar, India’s unique identification system, has become essential for identity verification and service delivery, significantly impacting the lives of over 1.4 billion people since its inception in 2009. It is crucial in social welfare, financial inclusion, and digital governance. Aadhaar’s biometric authentication, including fingerprint, iris, and face recognition, ensures uniqueness, reduces fraud, and improves service delivery.

Initially, Aadhaar used fingerprint authentication, which proved cost-effective and widely accessible. However, environmental factors, age, and manual labor sometimes affected its reliability, leading to the introduction of iris authentication. Iris scans provided high accuracy and were particularly useful for individuals with hard-to-capture fingerprints, though they required specialized handling.

In 2018, the UIDAI introduced face authentication, which enhanced inclusivity, particularly for the elderly and disabled. With an accuracy rate of 84%, face authentication quickly gained popularity due to its contactless nature and ease of use via smartphones. Today, it supports over 55 million transactions monthly and is used for KYC processes, improving the customer experience across sectors, including banking, government services, and travel.

This playbook is a reference guide that will help introduce audiences to face authentication as a modality and provide an overview of its adoption along with prevalent use cases.