by Brianna Crandall — February 26, 2014—HID Global, an ASSA ABLOY Group brand and provider of secure identity solutions worldwide, recently announced the acquisition of Lumidigm, a provider of authentication solutions around the globe that use multispectral imaging technology, software, and biometric fingerprint sensors to authenticate identities with a high degree of certainty. The acquisition extends HID Global’s authentication portfolio while positioning the company to deliver a variety of new secure identity solutions.
“Lumidigm’s proven product portfolio will enhance our current strong authentication offerings, especially for healthcare, financial institutions and other high-security environments,” said HID Global President and CEO Denis Hébert. “The company has unique technology protected by a large patent portfolio and proprietary algorithms, and has achieved strong penetration in key emerging markets including South America and Africa. Additionally, Lumidigm has a premier global customer base across multiple strategically important markets. We are extremely pleased to have Lumidigm’s talented team join the HID Global family.”
Lumidigm’s technology solves problems with traditional biometric technology, whose contact-based measurement accuracy is degraded by non-ideal skin condition, poorly defined or damaged fingerprints, and adverse environmental conditions. In contrast, multispectral imaging technology uses multiple light spectrums and advanced polarization techniques to extract unique fingerprint characteristics from both the surface and subsurface of the skin. This additional data enables multispectral imaging-based solutions to deliver the highest-quality fingerprint image and to more effectively discriminate real from imposter or “spoof” fingerprints.
“This acquisition will enable Lumidigm to take advantage of HID Global’s size, channel and product development strengths to exploit a variety of important new market opportunities,” said Bob Harbour, Executive Chairman of Lumidigm and Chairman and President of the International Biometrics & Identification Association. “As part of HID Global, Lumidigm can expand its current business while also extending proven technology beyond finger- and hand-based applications into iris, facial and other smart imaging systems. The combined company will also have the opportunity to apply multispectral imaging capabilities to credential acquisition and authentication, gesture recognition, and other image-based process control systems, making multifactor authentication on a single, integrated device a reality.”
