Secure Storage of Fingerprint Biometrics Using Slepian-Wolf Codes

We describe a method to encode fingerprint biometrics securely for use, e.g., in encryption or access control. The system is secure because the stored data suffices to validate a probe fingerprint but not to recreate the original fingerprint biometric. Therefore, a breach in database security does not lead to the loss of biometric data. We present a model for a secure biometric system for which we can make strong encryption-like security guarantees. We derive a fundamental trade off between system security and the robustness of authentication. The trade off is quantified for simple statistical models. We outline an implementation and report the effectiveness of our method as tested on a data base consisting of 579 datasets, each containing roughly 15 measurements of a single finger. Workshop on Information Theory and Applications This work may not be copied or reproduced in whole or in part for any commercial purpose. Permission to copy in whole or in part without payment of fee is granted for nonprofit educational and research purposes provided that all such whole or partial copies include the following: a notice that such copying is by permission of Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories, Inc.; an acknowledgment of the authors and individual contributions to the work; and all applicable portions of the copyright notice. Copying, reproduction, or republishing for any other purpose shall require a license with payment of fee to Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories, Inc. All