What used to sound like science fiction, or at least was limited to Hollywood action thrillers, is now becoming commonplace – biometrics and artificial intelligence. Airports have slowly embraced biometrics, beginning with the implementation of facial recognition software into the Immigration process. Now, thanks to research from The University of Manchester and Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, a new type of biometric recognition may be on the horizon at airports worldwide.

Gait Recognition, or the measurement of a person’s individual walking pattern, may be even more accurate than facial recognition. Research has concluded that individuals have approximately 24 identifying characteristics when walking. 24 different identifiers make it very difficult to impersonate someone’s footprint and walking pattern. In fact, a biometric identification system that employed Gait Recognition was recently tested with “imposters,” actors who attempted to mimic the footprint and gait of someone else. By instructing subjects to walk over a pressure pad embedded in the floor, this system analyzed each footstep and positively identified the correct individual 99.3% of the time!

With this much of a success rate and no need for passengers to remove their shoes, Gait Recognition may be the logical next “step” in the future of airport security.