Idemia provides Interpol with an enhanced version of its Multi-Biometric Identification System (MBIS), allowing the international law enforcement organization to use the latest algorithms for fingerprint, palm and face biometric matching.

The included latent fingerprint matching algorithm, known as MBIS 5/MBSS, ranked first in false non-identification rate (FNIR) in the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) latent fingerprint reference standard for identifying forensics (ELFT).

Idemia Public Security delivered the updated MBIS solution to Interpol last summer, but only revealed the update this month.

“With the delivery of this new version of the Multi-Biometric Identification System (MBIS), Interpol now benefits from the most advanced algorithms, enabling it to solve the most complex cases,” says Thibaut Sartre, Senior Vice President of International Justice and Public Safety at Idemia Public Security.

Algorithms are built into Interpol Biometric hub or the BioHub system that allows member countries to submit and cross-check fingerprints and facial images. BioHub allows multi-database checks with a single search, while manual reviews are still performed if the match does not meet a threshold due to low data quality. The system is currently being rolled out to frontline officers and border locations after the first phase of operation went live in October 2023.

Idemia has been working with Interpol since 1999, when the company supplied the police organization with the Automatic Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS). The system enabled better cooperation between law enforcement agencies in different countries, providing access to tools such as fingerprint evidence and sharing forensic data. In 2016, Idemia also created the Interpol Facial Recognition System (IFRS), which contains images of faces from over 170 countries.

The French company’s Multi-Biometric Identification System (MBIS) has been in use since 2019. Since then, Idemia has topped NIST standards, including the latest FRT 1:N facial recognition assessment.

Article topics

biometric identification | facial biometrics | fingerprint biometrics | IDEMIA | Idemia Public Security | interpolate | law enforcement | MBIS | palm biometrics | research and development