"Spoofing" is the term for overcoming a biometric recognition system (such as a fingerprint scan, an iris scan, or voice recognition) by introducing a fake sample. Designing a system that is proof against spoofing is the key to making a truly secure system.
In researching flaws in such systems with an eye toward making them safer, a Clarkson University professor and her research team found a decidedly low-tech solution for getting around fingerprint scanning: Making casts of live fingers made from dental materials and Play-Doh.
More than 60 of the faked samples were tested on standard fingerprint scanners. The results were a 90 percent false verification rate.
To improve the system, the team designed a computer algorithm that would detect perspiration patterns when reading a fingerprint image. After that improvement, less than 10 percent of the spoofed samples were able to fool the machine.
