An Enhanced Automated Teller Machine Security Prototype using Fingerprint Biometric Authentication

The steady growth in electronic transactions has promoted the Automated Teller Machine (ATM) thereby making it the main transaction channel for carrying out financial transactions. However, this has also increased the amount of fraudulent activities carried out on Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) thereby calling for efficient security mechanisms and increasing the demand for fast and accurate user identification and authentication in ATMs. This research analyses, designs and proposes a biometric authentication prototype for integrating fingerprint security with ATMs as an added layer of security. A fingerprint biometric technique was fused with personal identification numbers (PIN's) for authentication to ameliorate the security level. The prototype was simulated using a fingerprint scanner and Java Platform Enterprise Edition was used to develop an ATM application which was used to synchronize with a fingerprint scanner thereby providing a biometric authentication scheme for carrying out transactions on an ATM.