For signature verification
By Fauziah Muhtar
28th February 2002 (Computimes)

Besides fingerprints, iris detection and voice recognition, a signature can also be part of biometric verification system. Such biometric solution is offered by Biotrac Solutions Sdn Bhd through a product called Cyber-SIGN.

Cyber-SIGN is a biometric signature verification system which allows users to sign an electronic document as they would sign on a paper document. Unlike signing on a paper which can be forged, the system is secure because it detects behavioural biometric that analyses the stroke, timing and pressure created during the natural act of writing a signature.

"This system makes forgery almost impossible," claimed Nemophila (M) Sdn Bhd's director Grace Tan. She added that the system makes paperless environment possible as official forms or document that needed to be signed can now be done digitally as Cyber-SIGN can verify the signature.

Document using Cyber-SIGN signature verification is also considered as legal document and accepted in the court of law as it complies to legal rules as non-refutable with an assurance that the document is authentic and the signature is genuine, deliberate and not reusable.

"This is what a company can achieve by using the digital signature, a digital non-refutable document that bears the same characteristics as hard copy document," Tan explained.

The enterprise version supports client-server architecture, making it suitable in any network environment that is transmission control protocol/Internet protocol (TCP/IP)-enabled.

This system basically consists of a signing table and a software that captures the signature. It comes with a plug-in that supports word processors like Cyber-SIGN for Notes, MS-Word and Adobe Acrobat. The plug-in will enable the applications to track altered documents, do audit trail and secure each digital signature or verified document from being tampered with.

Each plug-in costs US$80 (RM304) and supports Windows-based tablet priced below RM350.

Tan said the digital signature system is currently used mainly by insurance companies, however, they are also targeting the government and banking industry. "For now we are looking more at business-to-business kind of usage rather than business-to-consumer," she said.