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The problem with using biometrics at all is that you're conflating authorization with authentication. Those are fundamentally different (at least in the society

The problem with using biometrics at all is that you're conflating authorization with authentication. Those are fundamentally different (at least in the society we live in). Biometrics are used for authentication - proving who you are (whether it works and can be duplicated is a different issue).Useful for a passport or driver's license. Car keys, passwords, ATM pin numbers are a form of authorization. For example, you may want to let your daughter withdraw money with your card or use your car. Biometrics can't be used for that purpose.

gravitycop 18y ago
For example, you may want to let your daughter withdraw money with your card That would be an example of a generic (unpersonalized) key. It's a poor example because: 1. People don't lend out ATM cards. 2. Why wouldn't I simply transfer funds into her account? 3. Physical cash is unlikely to exist for much longer. or use your car. The generic (unpersonalized) key, again. Why wouldn't I simply tell my car to let my daughter use it?
- statictype 18y ago
  1) Not even to their own family? 2) Because I had to go to shop to pick up some Foo and meanwhile wanted her to get some money from the machine that was next door..? 3) um, ok. If you say so. There are tons of reasons. I'm talking about how the world works right now. Not a hypothetical world that may or may not exist in the future.
  - gravitycop 18y ago
    Where did you get the idea that people lend ATM cards? http://www.google.com/search?q=%22lend+your+atm+card%22 http://www.google.com/search?q=%22lend+your+atm+card%22 http://www.google.com/search?q=%22lent+my+atm+card%22 http://www.google.com/search?q=%22lent+my+atm+card%22
  - gravitycop 18y ago
    Because I had to go to shop to pick up some Foo and meanwhile wanted her to get some money from the machine that was next door If you were buying something from a physical shop, you wouldn't need money from a machine next door, because shops can give cash at the register from the customer's bank account. http://www.google.com/search?q=%22would+you+like+cash+with+that%22 http://www.google.com/search?q=%22would+you+like+cash+with+t...
    - statictype 18y ago
      Man, you're really reaching. Forget it, you win.
wmf 18y ago
To put it another way, biometrics can support ACL-based authorization, but not capability-based authorization. However, since the entire world is using ACL-based authorization anyway, it's not a practical limitation.

gravitycop 18y ago

For example, you may want to let your daughter withdraw money with your card That would be an example of a generic (unpersonalized) key. It's a poor example because: 1. People don't lend out ATM cards. 2. Why wouldn't I simply transfer funds into her account? 3. Physical cash is unlikely to exist for much longer. or use your car. The generic (unpersonalized) key, again. Why wouldn't I simply tell my car to let my daughter use it?

statictype 18y ago
1) Not even to their own family? 2) Because I had to go to shop to pick up some Foo and meanwhile wanted her to get some money from the machine that was next door..? 3) um, ok. If you say so. There are tons of reasons. I'm talking about how the world works right now. Not a hypothetical world that may or may not exist in the future.
- gravitycop 18y ago
  Where did you get the idea that people lend ATM cards? http://www.google.com/search?q=%22lend+your+atm+card%22 http://www.google.com/search?q=%22lend+your+atm+card%22 http://www.google.com/search?q=%22lent+my+atm+card%22 http://www.google.com/search?q=%22lent+my+atm+card%22
- gravitycop 18y ago
  Because I had to go to shop to pick up some Foo and meanwhile wanted her to get some money from the machine that was next door If you were buying something from a physical shop, you wouldn't need money from a machine next door, because shops can give cash at the register from the customer's bank account. http://www.google.com/search?q=%22would+you+like+cash+with+that%22 http://www.google.com/search?q=%22would+you+like+cash+with+t...
  - statictype 18y ago
    Man, you're really reaching. Forget it, you win.

wmf 18y ago

To put it another way, biometrics can support ACL-based authorization, but not capability-based authorization. However, since the entire world is using ACL-based authorization anyway, it's not a practical limitation.