Biometrics are dominating discussions in the access control market, and have an increasingly large real-world impact. Find out all you need to know for 2026.
Biometrics are dominating discussions in the access control market, and have an increasingly large real-world impact. Biometric access control entails the use of one or a combination of personal biological traits to verify individuals. Usage of biometric access control has been on a steady increase, with Grand View Research estimating that the global biometrics market will reach US$150.58 billion by 2030, up from US$34.27 billion in 2022, at a CAGR of 20.4%.
asmag.com provides extensive coverage of biometric access control via a range of exclusive articles and suppliers’ news, all of which are included in this resource guide. It is our hope that the guide will further the readers’ understanding of biometric access control, its applications and featured solutions.
Table of contents
What is biometric access control
What are different types of biometrics used in biometric access control
Unimodal vs. multimodal biometric access control
What are some of the common applications for biometric access control?
Featured biometric access control solutions
Biometric access control is the verification of individuals by way of their biological traits. In access control, authentication can be done with three primary factors, namely what you have, what you know and what you are, and biometric is the “what you are” factor. The accuracy of biometric access control systems is measured in false acceptance rate (granting access to the wrong person) and false rejection rate (denying access to the right person). AI has greatly improved accuracy, for example in facial recognition. Faces can still be verified even with a mask on or with abundant facial hair. Challenges in biometric access control remain; these include faking and spoofing—areas that are seeing an AI arms race. Improper collection and use of biometric data also remains an issue.
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There are various biological traits on a person that can be used for biometric access control. Fingerprint solutions remain the oldest and most common biometric identification solutions. Facial recognition, iris recognition and palm, meanwhile, are categorized as contactless biometric authentication solutions. These have gained popularity as a means for biometric access control especially during and after the pandemic, and are continuing to gain traction. Other forms of biometric access control that are less common but still have growth potential include voice, gait and emotion recognition, especially when access control is integrated with wider security systems, including IoT and video surveillance. In such deployments, it is for example possible to follow or reconstruct the paths of users between access control points.
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Increasingly, multimodal biometric access control solutions, which entail the use of more than one biometric, are deployed. The intention is to make up for the shortcomings and limitations in unimodal biometric identity solutions. Facial recognition, for example, is known for issues dealing with racial bias. Fingerprint is less effective, or not effective at all, for a percentage of people with unidentifiable fingerprint. Multimodal biometrics, which use two or more biometrics—for example fingerprint-face or face-iris—can rectify this and have seen increased deployment among users. Closely related biometrics can also be paired to increase accuracy, for example palm print and palm vein biometrics.
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Biometrics are most often used as a means for access control and time attendance. For example, when an employee enters the office, they scan their fingerprint, the gate opens and the HR system logs their presence at work. Access control profiles are increasingly integrated with information from other realms, such as Wi-Fi user rights.
In verticals with especially high security needs, biometrics also bring several benefits. Airports, for example, increasingly use facial recognition, not just to speed up immigration, comparing biometric passport information with the face of the person who presents themself, but also at the boarding gate, where passport and boarding pass information no longer need to be checked manually. Banks also use facial recognition for authentication. In healthcare, contactless biometrics have gained outsized importance to promote good hygiene and prevent large-scale spread of diseases.
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Biometric access control solutions may be hardware-based, for example readers and modules, or software-based, like face detection and identification. Below we take a look at some of the biometric access control solutions featured on asmag.com.
Suprema BioStar X
Suprema’s BioStar X is an AI-powered unified security platform designed to consolidate biometric access control, video surveillance, and alarm management into a single interface. The platform integrates AI-driven video intelligence for real-time detection of specific events like tailgating, loitering, and falls. Built with a "secure by design" philosophy, it adheres to the latest global cybersecurity standards, ensuring biometric templates are fully encrypted. Its open API architecture makes it highly scalable, allowing for seamless integration with third-party systems like ERP, HR, and building IoT sensors.
ZKTeco Zophon-S1000
ZKTeco’s Zophon-S1000 is an Android-based modular access control unit that unifies facial recognition, palm verification, QR codes, and RFID authentication. Designed to eliminate "hardware clutter," it can be natively integrated into ZKTeco’s Saturn Series gates or retrofitted onto third-party infrastructure. Powered by the latest ZKFace and PalmElite AI algorithms, the module supports a capacity of up to 100,000 faces and 50,000 palms. It features edge AI for fast offline matching and uses AES-256 encryption to ensure high-level cybersecurity.
Salto XS4 Face
The Salto XS4 Face terminal focuses on balancing high-speed facial recognition with strict user privacy. A key differentiator of this system is that it does not store actual photos; it instantly converts facial images into encrypted templates and deletes the source image to mitigate data risks. The solution supports remote self-enrollment, allowing users to register via a selfie on their mobile devices. Beyond facial recognition, the hardware is part of the wider Salto ecosystem, supporting mobile keys, RFID cards, and PIN codes, all while featuring integrated liveness detection to prevent spoofing attacks.
HID Integration Service
Moving toward software-driven security, the HID Integration Service is an Integration Platform-as-a-Service (IPaaS) designed to bridge the gap between physical and cybersecurity. It allows developers and integrators to link biometric access control hardware with digital identity management systems through a comprehensive, scalable integration layer. By providing pre-built integrations, the service reduces the cost and complexity of maintaining custom-built connections. This platform is particularly effective for organizations looking to unify data collection and streamline user experiences across different security domains.
Editor’s note: This is an update to one of our 2023 articles