FaceTec Lauds iPhone X’s Face ID But Decries Price Tag

“FaceTec’s ZoOm software, meanwhile, is available for any mobile device running iOS 8.3 and up, or Android 4.3 and up.”

FaceTec is celebrating the iPhone X’s Face ID facial recognition system for pushing the field of mobile biometrics forward – and for highlighting the value of other facial recognition tools where iPhone X technology isn’t practical or available.

In a statement, FaceTec lauded the iPhone X for “clearing the path for immediate, widespread adoption of password-free 3D face authentication.” But the company also highlighted the device’s $999 price tag, adding that its Face ID technology isn’t yet available on any other Apple device; it may be a groundbreaking technology, but it’s only going to be available to a select few for a while.

FaceTec’s ZoOm software, meanwhile, is available for any mobile device running iOS 8.3 and up, or Android 4.3 and up. It can be configured to offer a False Acceptance Rate of one in a million – the same accuracy rate touted by Apple for Face ID – and the ZoOm SDK comes in a package of under 20MB. It’s also FIDO and iBeta certified.

“Apple wants you to think you need a $1000 phone to be secure but, with ZoOm, every smart device can have 3D face authentication,” said FaceTec CEO Kevin Alan Tussy. It’s a pitch that could reach some keen listeners if Face ID succeeds in popularizing facial recognition the way Apple’s Touch ID made fingerprint scanning mainstream after it launched in 2013.