Biometrics industry to exceed $30 billion by 2021

The biometrics industry is now projected to surpass $30 billion by 2021, a 118 percent increase over 2015, according to ABI research. A big part of this is fingerprint scanners, which has grown to be a massive portion of the market thanks to smartphones.

ABI Research expects embedded fingerprint sensors to be shipping 2 billion units by 2021, indicating a CAGR of 40 percent. Another aspect of this industry growth is the increasing use of biometric surveillance. Dimitrios Pavlakis, an analyst for ABI, said more than a third of surveillance cameras in 2021 will be IP cameras. "This will undoubtedly open up new pathways for facial biometrics and surveillance analytics," he said in a statement.

Facial recognition could also become a popular means of home security. Security systems embedded by a house's front door could include multiple forms of biometric security checks, like facial recognition and a fingerprint scan, which some systems already offer. These forms of biometric security are popular because of the state of technology today, but Pavlakis said future use of biometrics will likely soon include iris in smartphones and vein recognition in ATMs.

Several facial recognition systems from Global Sources suppliers include fingerprint scanners by default. These types of dual or multibiometrics checks could become popular to ensure these security measures are actually secure. While new technology for things that should be simple like unlocking a door can create headaches, as ABI Research shows that there is clearly a market for this technology, even if it's not winding up above the average person's welcome mat.