Cancellable Biometric Credentials Using Revocable Public Templates

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Solution Overview

Problem

Biometric data, once compromised, cannot be easily revoked or canceled, posing security and privacy risks due to the permanent association with individuals and vulnerabilities in template protection schemes.

Innovation Solution

A biometric cryptosystem that generates a revocable, public template by combining multiple biometrics, applying randomized projections to create a stable bit set, and using a hash function to generate a public key without storing the original biometric data.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If biometric data is stored for verification purposes, then verification accuracy is improved, but security and privacy risks increase because the data cannot be revoked or canceled once compromised

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveverification accuracyVSAvoidsecurity and privacy risks

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts only the essential verification capability from biometric data by generating a public key that can verify biometric input without storing the actual biometric template. The system takes out the verification function while leaving the original biometric data unstored and revocable, thus improving security while maintaining verification accuracy.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces a cryptographic intermediary (public key) that mediates between the biometric data and the verification system. This public key acts as a reversible commitment that enables verification without exposing or storing the original biometric information, resolving the contradiction between verification reliability and security risks.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Object-affected harmful factors

If template protection schemes are applied to safeguard biometrics, then security is improved, but verification accuracy degrades

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvebiometric securityVSAvoidverification accuracy

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a cryptographic copy (public key) of the biometric information that preserves verification functionality while eliminating security risks. This copy can be used for verification without degrading accuracy because it is generated through a lossless cryptographic process that maintains the essential verification properties of the original biometric data.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

3Reliability

If multiple biometrics are combined to increase security and accuracy, then security and accuracy are improved, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesecurity and accuracyVSAvoidsystem complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges multiple biometric inputs into a single cryptographic verification process. By combining multiple biometrics at the input stage and generating a unified public key, the system achieves enhanced security and accuracy while maintaining simple verification operations, thus improving reliability without proportionally increasing system complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Data Source

PatentUS20250365146A1Biometric credentials revocation or cancellable biometrics

Publication Date: 2025.11.27 AWARE INC

AI summary

Methods and systems are provided that allow a user to access a cryptosystem configured to revoke or cancel biometric credentials associated with the user. The cryptosystem may use randomized seeds and projections to identify elements unique to the user and generate a cancellable cryptographic key set used to verify the identity of the user.