Student Reflection - Robert McDown

Over the course of the summer, I worked with computer science professor Dr. Lei Chen, forensics science professor Dr. Chi Yu, and fellow computer science student, Josh Sablatura, on a FAST research project. Our research covered the examination of biometric authentication procedures and protocols of the iPhone 5S and Iritech IriShield Iris Scanner. As a result of the FAST research grant, my knowledge and understanding has grown immensely over the nascent field of biometric security.

The FAST grant has allowed me to develop my abilities as a researcher, developer, and academic by working with a well-organized and professional team. I have come to realize that when conducting a research study there will be times of uncertainty, frustration, and stress. However, due to the inclusive and helpful nature of our team, we were able to overcome all adversity and uncertainty together and achieve excellent results.

Our primary objective was to develop methods for extracting information from the devices. The iPhone 5S uses a fingerprint scanner and the Iritech Iris Scanner uses inferred iris scanner for authentication, so the goal was to see if the personal fingerprints and iris scans were susceptible to physical data extraction. The second goal was to develop various attack vectors for bypassing the biometric authentication protocols to give us unauthorized access to the device's interface. Throughout the course of our testing and development, we were able to bypass the iPhone 5S fingerprint authentication protocol by constructing a model fingerprint from a gelatin mold. We currently have future research ideas and goals to advance this study, such as constructing a three dimensional model of a fingerprint for authentication and using a Facedancer development board, developed by Travis Goodspeed, to intercept USB protocols from the iris scanner to its software hosted on a windows computer.

Currently, we are awaiting approval from the American Forensic Society (AFS) to present at their annual conference in Florida. Given the opportunity to present, we would be able to showcase our research to industry professionals and renowned academics. As a result, forensic investigators would be able to adopt the techniques demonstrated to them to help them become more effective in their investigations.