BIOMETRICALLY ENHANCED DIGITAL CERTIFICATES AND SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MAKING AND USING

摘要

The present invention provides biometrically enhanced certificates or other data structure or data item containing biometric information, by adding fields containing biometric information derived from a user to a conventional Public Key Certificate. A biometrically enhanced certificate, therefore, provides a digital identity that binds a public key not just to a name, but to a physical property or properties of the person or entity who is the subject of the certificate. In one embodiment, biometric certificate fields comprising biometric data are incorporated into private extensions of an X.509 identity certificate. In another embodiment, biometric certificate fields comprising biometric data are incorporated into an X.509 attribute certificate.