Fingerprint Id

[kaiweiler]

hey everyone, i was thinking of getting a fingerprint id device for my comp. one that allows only me to log onto my system. i've been looking around for these and seem to be finding tons for laptops, but not so many for desktops. just wondering how much these go for and where to get em? i'm from canada

Thanks
Kai

[SciManAl]

I don't know much about the Fingerprints...

I would actually suggest the retina... Much more available... I could be wrong however give this one some time... this is kinda out there topic...

[johnboy27]

Come to Dartmouth Kai,you can get the scanners at princess auto. Page 17 in this flyer. (http://www.princessauto.com/downloads/catalog242/flyer_english.pdf)

[kaiweiler]

thanks johnboy, i heard about this exact one from a friend, not much for looks, but works i suppose
one question though, could someone not just unplug it and start up your comp with no problem?

[kaiweiler]

*Bump*
Do these actually work? and can't someone just unplug them and log on? how do they work??

[johnboy27]

That is a good question.I would say you would need it to access the comp.If you can't scan the fingerprint to begin with then how are you going to get past the verification of the fingerprint.Your fingerprint would be on file,let's say.Your program is running on the comp.It is going to ask you to scan your finger before you can access the computer.If you unplug the scanner the software is still running,therefor you still need to scan.I don't know if this is the way it works or not but this is how I figure it is.

[kaiweiler]

yeah that makes sence...
think they are worth the money? they are not much, but is it a waste of money? my little 14 year old brother goes on my comp a lot when i'm not home and tends to fuck it up cuz he has no idea bouat anything cuz he's just a pothead, would it be worth it for me to get this?
EDIT also does anyone know how long they take to scan your print? will i be sitting there waiting for 10 mins befor eit recognizes it, or is it fast?

[SciManAl]

I am actually also very intrested in this area, I would like some way either finger or retina (whatever is most accurate and fast..) or something else... that way i can keep mia comp safe from thieves... :lol:

[kaiweiler]

I know, it sounds very good to me, as long as it is fast and doesnt increase your startup time a lot, it sounds like a very good thing to me
I just want someone who has one to tell me what they think of it, or anyone who even knows someone who has one! what are they like?! good, bad??

[ravendark]

let me try to answer about the , "if you unplug it" fears, (i actually got to play with one of these in my time at trade school) (they are neat, i just cant find any around here for a good price)

when you install the software/drivers for the hardware, it in effect replaces the windows NT login screen with its own, so if it is simply unpluged from the box and then restarted, you would get a message stating there has been tampering with the machine and ( insert action taken) is going to be performed on the system.

the one we messed with in class could be set from the low end ( "your scanning device has been removed from the system, please shut down and re install it")

to ( WARNING: This machine has been tamperd with, The contents will be erased with a Department of Defense Certifeid Zero Fill (optional software of course)

if anyone finds any in the U.S. for a good price i would like to hear about it, would have great potential for a mod.

[james_bond_rulez]

do i wanna bother myself with all that shit when I can just unplug the power and jack open the casing the remove the hdd?

:lol:

brute force rulez <_<

[SciManAl]

yeah, but then my hdd is encrypted... you have to run it on my comp to make it work...

[Weedy]

u said ur bor is only 14 and he smokes bud, u really think he could figure all of it out? :lol: <_< :lol:

[james_bond_rulez]

dude, even if it&#39;s encrypted i&#39;ll just hook it up with the mainframe computers at the University (CompSi friends really help out a lot) and run decryption althorithms :lol:

done in 1 day and less ROFLMAO

[DarthInsinuate]

wouldn&#39;t a BIOS password be more cost efficient than a thumb scanner?

[Livy]

Originally posted by DarthInsinuate@12 February 2004 - 15:42
wouldn&#39;t a BIOS password be more cost efficient than a thumb scanner?
all u need to do to bypass that though is clear cmos.

[ilw]

I read a couple of months back that nearly all current figerprint biometric scanners on the market are absolutely appalling as security devices, I&#39;d advise you to look for some reviews. All those under test could be bypassed with really low tech (and some were really stupid) solutions. The bottom line was that fingerprint scanners are generally useless.
If someone has physical access to your machine for a prolonged amount of time; the will and the knowledge to get all the info off your computer then no matter what you do they can get the data.

[kaiweiler]

Thanks for the info everyone,
@ravendark, when you were playing with one of these, how long did it take to recognize your print? do you have to hold your finger on for a long time, and in general how long does it take? would it turn into an annoyance?

[Mad Cat]

I&#39;ve heard of one that makes unique passwords to your fingerprint.

Like if you fingered (:P) it, and pressed something it would type in the password, not sure exactly.
This would be nice, 10 different paswords nearly unguessable at your fingertips.
The magazine that reviewed it also said they used many means to trick it, none of which worked.

[SciManAl]

done in 1 day and less ROFLMAO

beg your pardon?? 512b encryption key dude..no not one day or less...

[kaiweiler]

lol nobody is answering me and i&#39;m not sure if it&#39;s because they dont know or what?? does anyone have any idea on how much time it adds to your startup or how long it takes to recognize your print&#33;??
this is the main deciding factor for me, i dont want to have to sit there and have my finger on a sensor for 2 minutes while it checks and loads or whatever, is it instantaneous?

[ravendark]

well the one we used, and bear in mind this was about a year ago, didnt take much longer than a standard login screen. the screen would come up, and you would press your finger onto the print reader, it was designed as a button style thing, pressing on the reader would start the scan. then you would see a progress bar as it searched its database (only 4 of us were in there at the time, larger database = longer startup time)

[SciManAl]

hmm, they sound nice... i would love to get rid of the typing thing... hmm where is still a quesytion i have unanswered... what about in the US??

[johnboy27]

Try this Scimanal (http://www1.pricetool.com/xGS-fingerprint+scanner~NS-1~linkin_id-3039685) , I typed in "fingerprint scanners on google.

Here is the complete google page (http://www.google.com/custom?q=fingerprint+scanner&cof=GIMP%3Ared%3BT%3Ablack%3BLW%3A150%3BBIMG%3Agray%3BALC%3Ared%3BL%3Ahttp%3A%2F%2Fhome.eastlink.ca%2Fimages%2Felcslogo.gif%3BGFNT%3Agray%3BLC%3Ablue%3BLH%3A45%3BBGC%3Awhite%3BAH%3Aleft%3BVLC%3Apurple%3BS%3Ahttp%3A%2F%2Fhome.eastlink.ca%3BGALT%3Agreen%3BAWFID%3A4ba87f8562bc4600%3B).

And a little link for Kaiweiler (http://travel.howstuffworks.com/fingerprint-scanner.htm)

[james_bond_rulez]

i think a good STRONG password beats everything....

[SciManAl]

boy if these werent so pricey i would get one...

[kaiweiler]

Originally posted by ravendark@12 February 2004 - 17:23
well the one we used, and bear in mind this was about a year ago, didnt take much longer than a standard login screen. the screen would come up, and you would press your finger onto the print reader, it was designed as a button style thing, pressing on the reader would start the scan. then you would see a progress bar as it searched its database (only 4 of us were in there at the time, larger database = longer startup time)
That doesn&#39;t sound to bad, I would only have 1 or maybe 2 at the most in the database, wouldn&#39;t take long at all then, especially with 1
I&#39;ll be pickin one of these up sometime soon then, probably from the place in Dartmouth that johnboy showed me, johnboy, do you know if I could mail order from that site? I didn&#39;t see anyhting on there so I&#39;m assuming not, but it&#39;d save me over an hours drive...

Kai