Security and performance enhancement of fingerprint biometric template using symmetric hashing

• Published in: Computers & security Vol. 90; p. 101714
• Main Authors: S, Ajish, Anil Kumar, K S
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier Ltd 01.03.2020; Elsevier Sequoia S.A
• Subjects: Accuracy; Cybersecurity; Experimentation; Fingerprint template; Fingerprints; Irreversibility; Matching; Multiplication; Parameter modification; Performance enhancement; Salting; Security; Symmetric hashing; Unlinkability; Fingerprint template; Accuracy; Irreversibility; Symmetric hashing; Unlinkability
• ISSN: 0167-4048; 1872-6208
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cose.2020.101714

There are several fingerprint template protection methods among them the most common method is the symmetric hashing of the fingerprint template. The main problems still unsolved in the case of symmetric hashing are the excessive drop in accuracy, the reversibility and the linkability of hashed template. The experimental analysis of the existing hash method point out that there is an excessive drop in accuracy of matching. In this paper a modified symmetric hash method is proposed in which a key value is used as a multiplication parameter. The modified symmetric hash function is a combination of salting and non invertible transformation. Systematic experimentation point out that the accuracy of matching of the modified symmetric hash method is much better than the existing method. The security of the modified hashed fingerprint template is analysed based on irreversibility and unlinkability and the modified hashed fingerprint templates are more secure than the hashed fingerprint templates.