DHAKA, Bangladesh, July 3, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bangladesh software development has set yet another landmark by being the first country in the region to develop an NIST certified AFIS SDK. Bangladesh has been a leader in the realm of biometrics in South Asia. The voter roll creation in 2007/2008 was the first step. The Bangladesh Army, with software developed by TigerIT Bangladesh, successfully completed a record-setting biometric identity project for the largest project in the shortest timeframe. In 2008, Maj. Gen Shafiqul Islam of the Bangladesh Army received the ID People award 2008 for ID Outstanding Achievement. This was no minor accomplishment in the biometric identity field. In 2009, TigerIT has moved up another step and has developed an AFIS SDK that has been NIST certified. This puts Bangladesh among six countries who have developed an AFIS SDK that is certified by NIST. NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) is the de-facto test and certification for biometric SDK. Test results from NIST are universally accepted as the measurement of standard for biometric SDKs. However, there is a minimum criterion for the SDK and NIST will not test just any SDK. No other country in the region has developed an SDK worth submitting to NIST yet.
Inspired by the success of the biometric voter registration project in Bangladesh and encouraged by the Bangladesh Army, TigerIT began the development in early 2008. The biometric experts of TigerIT worked very hard to develop an AFIS SDK that would not only be NIST certified, but will be among the top three. TigerAFIS was developed in both an ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 14000:2004 certified environment. After a long development and QA process, the SDK was submitted to NIST for testing in June 2009.
The test results were published by NIST on the 29th of June. The results were overwhelming and places TigerAFIS in the tier-1 top five NIST AFIS group with NEC, Cogent, Sagem and L1. Because of this, it is expected that the tier-1 AFIS solution will be affordable to the developing countries who were not able to afford it before.
The results can be found at: http://fingerprint.nist.gov/PFT/index.html
In the largest and most relevant test datasets (DOS, POE, POEBVA), at a False Match Rate of 0.01%, TigerAFIS' accuracy for a two-finger match was in the top three across all participants scoring a 99.8% / 99.9% True Match Rate. In the smaller, less relevant dataset (DHS), imaged over 12 years ago using very little quality assurance, TigerAFIS was in the top four in accuracy for a two-finger match scoring 98.9% True Match Rate at a False Match Rate of 0.01%.
"I am very proud of our team's ability to develop an algorithm in less than two years time that rivals the accuracy of very large AFIS vendors that have invested tens of millions of dollars over several decades to achieve similar results," commented Ziaur Rahman, Chairman & CEO of TigerIT Bangladesh Ltd. "Our advanced and modular Web 2.0 compliant identity management and credentialing solution (TigerID) has already been proven in one of the largest, digital biometric identity management and credentialing projects in the world here in Bangladesh. I am confident that our multimodal biometric matching engine, complete with our top-tier, NIST-validated fingerprint technology, will also go on to set new precedents in the marketplace in the coming months."
Using image quality assurance routines currently deployed on projects worldwide, the NIST PFT test results reveal that TigerAFIS can easily attain an Equal Error Rate below one-half (1/2) of one-tenth (1/10) of a percent, leveraging two fingers for matching.
The TigerAFIS is built upon Web 2.0 standards, delivering a services-oriented engine that is highly scalable, leveraging parallel processing technology and standard, commercial computing hardware. The business rules and workflows that moderate the TigerAFIS are completely configurable for each customer and are abstracted from both the TigerAFIS matching engine, as well as any applications that are delivered. This results in the ultimate control over TigerAFIS for our customers without requiring our staff to come back on-site in the future. Easy to use, secure web services enable any identity management system to interact and moderate TigerAFIS servers without any complicated systems integration tasks.
Our customers benefit the most when TigerAFIS is delivered as a module in our overall identity management and credentialing solution, TigerID. TigerID is a cost-effective, comprehensive suite of modular SOA components (applications, interfaces and engines) that includes pre-enrollment, enrollment, fee-for-service, identity proofing and vetting with adjudication, credential personalization and management (including traditional and electronic cards and passports), credential issuance and life-cycle management, hotlists and revocation lists, expedited entry/exit, border control and a rich administration, reporting and management dashboard. These modules interface elegantly with TigerID's Web 2.0 compliant identity management workflow and database engine, optimized for identity management and credentialing programs.
Due to the recent NIST results, TigerIT Bangladesh Ltd. has already sold their AFIS solution to the Nigerian Government and the Colombian Government. Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and few others are evaluating the solution through a pilot. When it comes to biometric technology, Bangladesh is now considered as a super power. TigerIT biometric ID solution is being used in Canada for children's IDs and also in Afghanistan for biometric ID for banking.
AFIS is now becoming an integral part of our national life. National ID, Voter list, Machine readable Passport and ePassport, Police AFIS, etc. all require AFIS solutions, that so far Bangladesh had to depend on other countries for. With a top ranking AFIS of our own, we no longer need to look anywhere else and it will be a lot less expensive as well.
The biometric technology supremacy is not only prestigious, but also opens doors for opportunities. IT companies in Bangladesh have a larger international exposure now. We should capitalize on this to outsource, not only biometric technology, but IT solutions as a whole. In this respect, we expect our government to promote local software and strengthen the IT industry in Bangladesh.
About TigerIT:
TigerIT Bangladesh Limited, headquartered in Dhaka, Bangladesh, is a full-service developer of multimodal biometric identity solutions for both government agencies and the private sector. TigerIT is routinely considered by many to employ the most experienced and capable development team in Bangladesh. Some of the end-customers that benefit from TigerIT include global Fortune 500 corporations. TigerIT solutions are developed in both an ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 14000:2004 certified environment.
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