IPA IP 2024 Question 72

Topic: Security

A question IPA Japan published in 令和6年度 ITパスポート試験 公開問題 問72, translated into English. ITPEC is based on the same exams.

Among the descriptions below, which of the following lists all and only the examples of biometric authentication?

AAn image consisting of a string of distorted characters is displayed on a web page, and authentication is performed by having the user enter the character string that the user read.BThe user is made to enter a specific character string on a keyboard, and authentication is performed by the changes in the speed and timing of the keystrokes at that time.CThe user is made to enter his/her name by handwriting on a touch panel, and authentication is performed by the handwriting trail, the pen pressure, the writing speed, etc. at that time.DAuthentication is performed by having the user trace multiple dots that are displayed on a touch panel in a predetermined order.

Explanation

B, C — biometric authentication identifies a person by a physical or behavioural characteristic of the body, and both keystroke rhythm and the way a person signs are behavioural characteristics.

  • •A — not biometric: this is a CAPTCHA, which only checks that a human, not a program, is operating; it does not tell who the person is
  • •B — biometric: the speed and timing of each person’s keystrokes are a habit of the body (keystroke dynamics)
  • •C — biometric: the trail, pen pressure and speed of a handwritten signature are characteristics of the signer’s movement (signature dynamics), which a forger copying the shape does not reproduce
  • •D — not biometric: the order of the dots is something the user remembers, a pattern lock, the same kind of factor as a password

Answer (c)

Why not others:

  • •(a) A, B — includes A, which proves only that the operator is human
  • •(b) A, D — neither is biometric: A is a CAPTCHA, D is knowledge
  • •(d) C, D — includes D, which anyone who learns the pattern can repeat

Key rule: Biometric authentication uses what the person is or how the person moves (fingerprint, vein, iris, face, signature, keystrokes); what the person knows, such as a password or a pattern, is knowledge-based.

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This question comes from the past questions IPA Japan publishes, translated into English by ITPEC Practice. ITPEC Practice is an independent study tool and is not affiliated with IPA or ITPEC. See the original paper (PDF) or Report an issue.