Biometric Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Product, By Technology, Regional Outlook, Competitive Strategies, And Segment Forecasts, 2019 To 2025

The global biometric market is expected to witness significant growth owing to the need for accurate identity-based IT solutions and advanced security mechanisms to combat mounting terrorism and criminal activities. Biometric systems are increasingly becoming prerequisites for identification and verification purposes by governments across the globe. Additionally, the buoyant growth of technology stems from its enormous use of e-commerce and cloud computing.

Integration of biometrics across smartphones, the introduction of e-passports, and increasing adoption of the technology across sectors such as healthcare & banking are projected to drive biometrics market demand. Furthermore, varied technological advancements, increasing disposable income combined with growing awareness of the technology are expected to increase demand. Biometric data protection is increasingly replacing photographs, passports, and PIN codes in government centers, educational institutes, and workplaces. Bring Your Device (BYOD) technology in workplaces and the increasing storage of crucial data on devices are the impetus for the surging demand.

The introduction of e-passport, voter registration in a low literacy economy, ration card registration, and identifying persons of interest has led to its increasing adoption across the government sector. For instance, Aadhar, India’s national ID program is one of the largest biometric databases in the world enabling government agencies to deliver retail services without cumbersome paper-based mechanisms or the physical presence of an officer at a given place. Moreover, in educational and commercial sectors, fingerprints are increasingly being used to maintain employee attendance, time, and work-check, thus leading to its increasing adoption across this industry. Fingerprint technology is also used in cashless vendor machines to identify students and employees.

The biometric market is projected to be boosted by increased innovative technologies characterized by accuracy and lower implementation costs. Electroencephalogram and electrocardiogram are emerging technologies that are expected to drive the market. These techniques trace the distinct nature of heart and brain patterns of specific individuals enabling increased fraud resistance. Behavioral identification patterns such as typing rhythm, gait, and voice are gaining popularity owing to the need for stronger security systems. The operational signature is an identification mode to capture a person’s usage manner as a verification template. It is projected to be used in telerobotic surgery systems to distinguish among unique users.

Biometrics uses can be split up into two segments including consumer-facing and enterprise-facing use cases. Consumer-facing use cases comprise high volume sales at a lower price, such as identification and security usage in mobile devices and other consumer electronic devices, enabling limited access to personal and enterprise data. They predominantly use technologies such as fingerprint identification, a cost-efficient technology for the consumer segment. Enterprise-facing use cases primarily deploy a more advanced technology at a higher cost, but the volumes of transactions undertaken by it are relatively low. The government and defense sectors employ advanced mechanisms for tracking criminals and maintaining homeland security.

Based on application, the biometrics market can be segmented into government, healthcare, military & defense, banking & finance, travel & immigration, consumer electronics, and security. Consumer electronics and banking & finance are anticipated to witness significant growth over the forecast period. End-use segmentation comprises device authentication, point-of-sale transactions, mobile banking, government IT systems, ATMs (cashpoints), wearable device authentication, and pharmacy dispensing.

By authentication type, the market can be segmented into face identification, signature identification, voice, fingerprint, iris recognition, palm, and vein recognition, among others. Fingerprint recognition is projected to dominate the industry over the forecast period. However, iris and face recognition are expected to undergo significant growth. Additionally, voice recognition is supposed to witness significant growth owing to consumers’ preference for a safer identity mechanism.

The technology is often identified as detrimental to personal privacy and human dignity, rendering human attributes to mere collections of prints. Dehumanization, infringement of bodily integrity, and the high cost of these devices can restrain industry growth.

Grave security issues stem from miss usage of the security system by potential hackers and thieves, which can lead to the leakage of crucial identity-based information. The industry is plagued with enormous costs of the technology and accuracy issues, especially in the case of the developing technologies such as face and bodily recognition. Complex and cumbersome mechanisms result in low accuracy and reproducibility requiring persistent innovation in technology.

North America is estimated to dominate the industry owing to the technologically advanced infrastructure coupled with the wide adoption of the technology across countries such as the U.S. Further; the Asia Pacific is projected to witness significant growth due to the varied government initiatives to adopt the technology across countries such as India, thus driving demand.

The dominant vendors across the biometric systems industry include Bio-Key International Inc., Fulcrum, Safran SA, 3M Cogent Inc., NEC Corporation, Fujitsu Ltd., Cross Match Technologies, Suprema Inc., Thales SA, and Secunet Security Networks AF.