About us
The Biometrics Institute is the independent and international membership organisation for biometrics. It was founded in July 2001 in Australia responding to an industry need for an impartial forum for sharing knowledge and information about biometrics. It expanded its outreach to New Zealand in 2004, to Singapore in 2011 and opened a subsidiary in London, UK, in July 2011 to create a global biometrics network. You can listen to an introduction to the Biometrics Institute in the podcast from October 2012.
The organisation is unique in that it has been set up as a user group with a majority of user members such as government departments and organisations using or planning to use biometrics running the association. The organisation's constitution requires the majority of the Board of Directors, the Chairman and Deputy Chairman to be user representatives. The Biometrics Institute has been set up to give more voting rights to its user and government members. Nonetheless, the Biometrics Institute encourages vendors of biometric and other related products and services to join the organisation.
The primary members are government and users of biometric services and products, with other membership categories for vendors.The members are from around the world including amongst others Australian Customs and Border Protection Service, Brisbane Airport, Department of Labour - Immigration New Zealand, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (UK), Ministry of Defence Singapore, Morpho and Unisys.
Why are we different?
- Truly independent and self-funded organisation
- Dedicated full-time staff with excellent business, research and event organisation skills
- "Getting things done" culture
- 10 year track record of providing an unbiased forum promoting the responsible use of biometrics
First article about the Biometrics Institute establishment:
"Biometrics: The body and soul of security" by Jeanne-Vida Douglas, ZDNet Australia, 14 February 2002
More on biometrics:
"Biometrics" Raconteur insert in The Times, 25 February 2013
"Companies get into a biometrics groove" by Sue Cant, Fairfax Digital, 23 December 2003
"Biometrics still searching for a pulse" by David Braue, ZDNet Australia on 6 April 2005