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Biometrics, which consists of authenticating or identifying people by their physical characteristics
including fingerprints, face, iris and veins, is a growing technology across several European countries.
When asked about the applications of biometrics, the French were most enthusiastic about adopting
this technology to identify criminals, with 89% supporting the use of biometrics for this purpose
compared to 80% in Britain and 77% in Germany.

Furthermore, almost three quarters (69%) of respondents across Europe agreed that they would
support the use of biometrics in identity cards or passports, with 81% of French citizens in favour of
this application, compared to 73% of Danish and 68% of British respondents. The same percentage of
respondents across Europe (69%) were also in favour of using biometrics to enter secure areas, lead
once again by the French at 77%, followed by the Danes at 75% and the British at 69%.
However, when it comes to everyday applications of biometrics technology, only 45% of citizens
agreed they are in favour of the use of biometrics to replace PIN numbers for bank cards. Only 41% of
Germans were keen to use biometrics for this purpose, compared to 43% of Norwegians and 44% of
Swedish citizens. The French are interestingly above the European average with 52% in favour.

Citizens were also divided in their opinions around the benefits of biometrics ID/passports applications.
Around half of respondents (54%) said security against identify theft is the most important reason for
using biometric ID or passports, while 12% think reducing crime was more important. Only 4% feels
that simplifying administrative procedures is the most important application for biometrics technology.
Steria has a proven track record in biometrics technology, having delivered biometrics solutions to
customers in 27 countries, including the UK, Switzerland, Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Belgium
and France. Earlier this year, Steria was selected by the Danish Police for an eight-year biometrics
fingerprint identification programme and, alongside the European Commission, recently announced
the deployment of a state-of-the-art second generation Schengen Information System (SIS II) which
uses biometrics data to help streamline border control processes and transform the way Schengen
States share information.

“Biometric technology is increasingly used to support a diverse range of tasks. Within the security
market, it is typically used to process asylum applications and to provide smooth flow of cross-border
traffic, or to identify criminal identities and control access to military facilities. Other markets are also
adopting it where it is used, to protect health records and even bank accounts. However, many
citizens are still wary of adopting this technology in their everyday lives due to concerns around
privacy”, says Ole Marius Steinkjer, Business Developer at Steria’s Centre of Excellence, Biometrics.

“Despite these concerns, it is becoming increasingly common for organisations to use biometrics for
effective identification and authentication – for example, airlines, gyms and self-service convenience
stores aiming to increase their efficiency, or pharmacies using it to secure their medicine stocks. It is
absolutely vital that organisations fully understand the consumer benefits and position them correctly
to encourage mainstream adoption of biometrics applications,” added Steinkjer.