November 22, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Korean tech firm LG Electronics plans to adopt 3-D facial recognition software for its latest high-end G6 smartphone, according to news reports on April 12.

The Korean tech giant has reportedly tapped local facial recognition solutions firm Oez -- that developed OezFR software -- for a partnership.

After negotiations and a series of tests, the software will likely be deployed in the G6 as early as June when the tech giant is expected to start its mobile payment system LG Pay. 

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“Should LG utilize OezFR to support the payment system, it will be the first time for a facial recognition system to be used for financial transactions in the premium smartphone secto,” an industry source was quoted by News Prime, a local online news outlet.

LG Electronics reportedly chose Oez because its software was seen to be easy to apply to contactless biometric technology in other LG flagship devices including the V20 and G5. Oez’s face-scanning software takes up relatively little memory of 3.5-5 megabytes, and comes with security measures to prevent hacking attempts with pictures.

The reports come after LG’s crosstown rival Samsung rolled out the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, both of which have incorporated facial recognition software for user authentication. Global smartphone makers, including Apple, are also expected to deploy the contactless authentication system based on 3-D cameras.

LG rolled out the G6 as its latest premium smartphone, but it only features a rather outdated fingerprint scanning technology while other types of biometric technologies, such as an iris scanner, have become mainstream. Such biometric technologies are currently considered a key feature for more secure mobile financial services.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)