Getting Fingerprint Readers to Read Your Prints?

crypticgeek asks: "I recently obtained a new job, and I'm already at my wit's end. Many of the doors in our facility have finger print readers because they are high security areas. No matter how hard I've tried, I can't get the system to read my prints very well, since they aren't well 'defined'. This means I don't have access to the areas I need to. I have to have someone else let me in to secure areas. I've tried using lotion thinking they were too dry, but that didn't work. In fact, most of the time my hands are really sweaty. Someone suggested I use nail polish remover and that would 'raise' the print, however I'm skeptical. Has anyone else had problems with finger print devices, or know of some possible ways of getting a better read?"

Comments

Not your problem

[voice_of_all_reason]

Sit at your desk with no work to do, buddy. Just be sure to set something in motion to get someone else who's job it is to fix these sort of problems on it.

Why should you trouble yourself if the company's assclown policies are preventing you from doing work?

Whooa!

[pmc]

You have to have someone else let you into secure areas? This strikes me as very risky indeed - for your career that is. Among other things, the point of such systems is to audit who enters the areas, and you are circumventing it.

Get them to fix the system so it lets you in - don't put yourself at risk by breaking the rules.

Check your finger positioning

[Baron_Yam]

It appears the loops and whorls of my fingerprints are a little lower than average - so when I first tried to use a fingerprint reader I couldn't register with the system, nevermind authenticate with it later. Then, I finally loaded up an admin utility that showed the scanned image that the recognition engine was using - and I noticed the print didn't look complete.

Solution: I put almost half of the required fingertip over the top of the imaging sensor, so the stupid little device gets the part of my print it really wants.

Anyway, it might be worth a try to play around with finger positioning.

Re:DO NOT USE ALCOHOL UNTIL YOU ARE SURE

[Wolfger]

many fingerprint scanners and touchscreens are actually damaged by alcohol, especially older ones. So unless you want to ruin it for everyone...

Ruining it for everyone doesn't sound like a half-bad idea, actually. I mean, how much security can there be if people who can access these areas are letting you in because you can't? Maybe if the readers are an abysmal failure, they will be replaced with something more sensible.