ENHANCING SECURITY USING FINGERPRINT AUTHENTICATION

INTRODUCTION

Loop class into Left Loop and Right Loop. The Arch class was also divided into Plain Arch and Tented Arch. These five classes are known as the Henry classes. To assign a fingerprint to any of those five classes, he introduced two fingerprint singularities: the core and the delta. The classification scheme introduced by Henry represents nowadays the basis of most of the current systems. A fingerprint in its narrow sense is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human finger. In a wider use of the term, fingerprints are the traces of an impression from the friction ridges of any part of a human or other primate hand. A print from the foot can also leave an impression of friction ridges. A friction ridge is a raised portion of the epidermis on the digits (fingers and toes), the palm of the hand or the sole of the foot, consisting of one or more connected ridge units of friction ridge skin. These are sometimes known as “epidermal ridges” which are caused by the underlying interface between the dermal papillae of the dermis and the interpapillary (rete) pegs of the epidermis. These epidermal ridges serve to amplify vibrations triggered, for example, when fingertips brush across an uneven surface, better transmitting the signals to sensory nerves involved in fine texture perception. These ridges may also assist in gripping rough surfaces and may improve surface contact in wet conditions.

Impressions of fingerprints may be left behind on a surface by the natural secretions of sweat from the eccrine glands that are present in friction ridge skin, or they may be made by ink or other substances transferred from the peaks of friction ridges on the skin to a relatively smooth surface such as a fingerprint card. Fingerprint records normally contain

impressions from the pad on the last joint of fingers and thumbs, although fingerprint cards also typically record portions of lower joint areas of the fingers.

Fingerprint authentication, which is also sometimes referred to as fingerprint recognition,

human  being  has  unique  fingerprints,  so  it   is   possible   to   create   an   automated identification program using this biometric. Of course, in order to be able to identify

someone based on his or her fingerprints, he or she must have provided fingerprints at an earlier point in time. Therefore, fingerprint authentication systems rely on a database containing scans of fingerprints and the identities to which they are connected.

print, and matches the biometrics of the print to the information that it has on file. Fingerprint authentication is often used for security purposes. Protected rooms, for example, may use a security system that relies on a fingerprint system to ensure that only certain people can enter. There are some safes that rely on similar technology and will only open for a person with the stored fingerprint.

Therefore, in designing a system to Enhance Security through Fingerprints Authentication in Caritas University, all measure of fingerprint security will be taken and the following features will be taken to make the system effective.

Effective students, staffs, visitors Database must be in place.

Security system that will use fingerprints to identify people who moves in and out of the institition must be in place.

                        STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The security system (Fingerprints Authentication) will be designed to solve some security issues/problems relating to students exit (clock in and clock out), staff daily registration (clock in and clock out) and information of visitors coming in and out of Caritas University. Some of these problems are:

• Difficulties in keeping security records about students, staff and visitors who come in and go out of the
• Difficulties in tracking students, staff and visitors information in case of emergencies.
• Difficulties in giving daily, monthly and annual security report of the

                        OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

This project is designed to improve some challenges facing Security Authentication in Caritas University. The main objective of this designed system is to help control impersonation using the following:

• Implementation of    good    security   management    system    using                               Fingerprint
• Well defined and structured Database to help keep track of Students, Staff and visitors record that comes in and goes out of the
• To build a user friendly and interactive interface, thus increasing efficiency in security management system using a user friendly programming language
• For easy retrieval of records by administrators using a simple data mining

                        SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This project will help the management of Caritas University Amorji-Nike Enugu to reduce impersonation through fingerprint authentication and the maintenance of a robust database of people coming in and going out of the institution as well as provide a simple data mining tool for easy retrieval of information.

                        SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This project is designed for Caritas University Amorji-Nike Enugu and covers the security authentication of students, staff and visitors of the above mentioned persons that comes in and goes out of the Institution.

                        LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

Due to time constraint and limited resources a simulation will be used to demonstrate the use of fingerprint authentication in security management in the above named Institution.

                        DEFINITION OF TERMS

• FINGERPRINT: are the traces of an impression from the friction ridges of any part of a human or other primate hand. OR, is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human
• AUTHENTICATION: Authentication is the process of determining whether someone or something is, in fact, who or what it is declared to be. It is the act confirming the truth of an attribute of a datum or entity. It might involve confirming the identity of a person, software program, tracing the origins of an artifact.

• FINGERPRINT AUTHENTICATION:  is  also  sometimes   referred   to   as fingerprint recognition or her
• ENHANCEMENT: an enhancement is a noteworthy improvement to the product as part of a new version of it. The term is also sometimes used to distinguish an improvement (enhancement) of some existing product capability from a totally new capability. Also mean a Change that increases the value of an
• BIOMETRIC: “Biometrics” means “life measurement” but the term is usually associated with the use of unique physiological characteristics to identify an individual. It also refers to the identification of humans by their characteristics or traits. Biometrics  is  used  in  computer  science  as  a  form  of  identification  and access
• SECURITY: is the degree of resistance to, or protection from, harm. It applies to anyvulnerable and valuable asset, such as a person, dwelling, community, nation, or organization. It also refer to the protection of information assets through the use of technology, process, and training.
• FINGERPRINT SENSOR:
• identity is  an electronic
• finger, processes the print, and matches the biometrics of the print to the

information that it has on file.

• DATABASE: is a structured collection of data/ information that is organized so that it can easily be accessed, managed, and