Carjackers swipe biometric Merc, plus owner's finger

Carjackers swipe biometric Merc, plus owner's finger
John Leyden, The Register 2005-04-04

A Malaysian businessman has lost a finger to car thieves impatient to get around his Mercedes' fingerprint security system. Accountant K Kumaran, the BBC reports, had at first been forced to start the S-class Merc, but when the carjackers wanted to start it again without having him along, they chopped off the end of his index finger with a machete.

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Carjackers swipe biometric Merc, plus owner's finger 2005-04-04
Anonymous

I'd note that in PIN vs. biometrics, the insecurity of the PIN is an advantage, as seen in this case. If someone demands your PIN you give them the PIN, they take this load of cash and scram, and you call your bank and change the PIN so they can't get any more. If biometrics are needed for access, the crook removes the appropriate part of your body and scrams, and you can't change the access code. The PIN may be more insecure, but it's a lot easier to minimize the damage from a security breach.

Not that this is new. We saw in the movie "Demolition Man" exactly how to circumvent biometric access controls. You can't be really squeamish, but then I suspect the squeamish don't take up a life of crime in the first place.

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Link to this comment: http://www.securityfocus.com/comments/articles/10817/31272#31272

Biometrics; PIN Numbers 2005-04-06
Anonymous