Lumidigm announced today that it is deploying fingerprint sensors into automated teller machines (ATMs) of Brazil's second largest state-owned bank, CAIXA, via partners Diebold Incorporated (NYSE:DBD), which is supplying the ATMs, and Griaule, a Brazilian-based software company that is providing supporting software.

The Bolsa Família Program, which provides payments to low income families to help keep their children in school, was the catalyst for using fingerprint biometrics to replace individual PIN numbers for access to CAIXA ATMs. Many users in the program do not have bank accounts and use the ATM only once a month to get their stipend. As such, they often forgot their passwords and bank managers were spending too much time resolving getting PINs renewed or changed. With 14,000 ATMs involved in the program, this was a major problem. CAIXA has more than 58 million registered customers

"Our fingerprint sensors are reliable and intuitive, perfect for unattended applications such as ATM access," says Lumidigm Vice President of Transaction Systems Bill Spence. "CAIXA customers simply insert their card and touch the fingerprint reader to conveniently withdraw their funds from the ATM and be on their way. No PIN to remember, no training required. It's that simple."
Lumidigm fingerprint sensors employ multispectral imaging technology which reads fingerprints both on and below the skin. This technology leverages a richer biometric data set for higher biometric performance and passes the benefits on to bank customers, who gain a convenient and intuitive access to the system, and to the bank, which is ensured a secure and reliable ATM network.
Latin America is rapidly embracing fingerprint technology as the preferred mode to provide security and convenient access to their financial resources via ATMs. Last month, Lumidigm announced that Itautec is presently installing the first 12,000 Lumidigm fingerprint readers into the ATM network of one of Brazil's largest private banks. Lumidigm fingerprint sensors can also be found in banking projects in India and South Africa.