Secure Storage of Fingerprint Biometrics Using Slepian-Wolf Codes

This paper describes 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. This paper presents a model for a secure biometric system for which the authors can make strong encryption-like security guarantees. This paper derives a fundamental trade off between system security and the robustness of authentication.