Lufthansa Systems demos airline biometric ID system

Two German companies have developed a new biometric system for identifying airline passengers during the boarding process.

Lufthansa Systems Group, the IT services arm of German airline Lufthansa, and high-security document producer Bundesdruckerei are demonstrating their jointly developed SecBoard system at the InterAirport trade show in Munich through Oct. 14.

The system, designed to conduct biometric checks on passengers prior to boarding an aircraft, will play a significant role in the introduction of “trusted passenger” programs planned by the airline industry to increase aviation security, the two companies said Tuesday.

Passengers with an electronically readable identity card containing biometric data will also benefit from technology: they will be able to move through airport security points more quickly and easily than travelers without cards, the companies said.

The SecBoard system consists of two parts. The first part is registration. At an enrollment station, passengers’ fingerprints are recorded, digitized and stored on a smart card, which only needs to be issued once but can be used again in all future flights. In addition to the fingerprint data, the card contains a photo of the passenger, personal information and a serial number. At check-in, the serial number is linked to the check-in data.

The second part of the system is the boarding station between check-in and the aircraft, where a fingerprint check is conducted. The fingerprint data from this check is compared with the fingerprint data stored in the card. If the data matches, the passenger can board the aircraft.

The digitally stored fingerprints are linked to a single person, counterfeit proof and protected against unauthorized access through the so-called Basic Access Control method, which has been developed for the new German biometric passports, according to Lufthansa Systems.

In June, the German government took a big step in the battle against organized crime and terrorism by unveiling plans to introduce a new passport with a chip that contains biometric data next month, in a move to be among the first in Europe to issue biometric passes.

The new passport, valid for 10 years, will include an embedded RFID (radio frequency identification) chip that will initially store a digital photo of the passport holder’s face. Starting in March 2007, the holder’s left and right index fingerprints will also be stored on the chip.