Altron’s BSI partners with SA Post Office to power social grant delivery with biometric technologies

JSE- listed Altron’s subsidiary Bytes Systems Integration (BSI) has been awarded multiple tenders, worth a combined amount of close to R220 million to support the South African Post Office (SAPO) with biometric technology as it gets ready to take over the payment of social security grants. The solution from BSI will see citizens identities being verification engine.

The technology also caters for the verification of a persons full names while a copy of the persons photo held in the Hanis database is provided to assist in resolving so-called false negatives.

Our appointment by SAPO to partner with them to provide this vital service is great for our society as our technology is designed to support local companies facing local challenges, and we are pleased the biometric solution will assist SAPO to have a positive impact on peoples lives, eliminating forgery and criminal activity in the grant dispensation process, says Leslie Moodley, Managing Director of Bytes Systems Integration.

SAPO has, along with most of SAs big banks, chosen Lumidigm fingerprint readers from Bytes Systems Integration because of its superior patented fingerprint capturing technology, known as Multispectral Imaging (MSI), which integrates with Hanis. Unlike the surface fingerprint characteristics that can be obscured by moisture, dirt or wear, the ˜inner fingerprint lies undisturbed and unaltered beneath the surface. When surface fingerprint information is combined with subsurface fingerprint information and reassembled in an intelligent and integrated manner, the results are more consistent and more inclusive, added Moodley.

Following an agreement signed in December between SAPO and the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA), SAPO is set to take over paying grants to some 17 million South African grant recipients. As part of the social security deal, BSI has secured several contracts with SAPO, which include: Supply, installation and support of Lumidigm biometric fingerprint readers to all SASSA and Postbank branches; Supply, installation and support of web cameras to all SASSA and PostBank branches; Training of SAPO support users.

SAPO contracted with Bytes Systems Integration following SAPO being granted membership to the South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC). One of the benefits of this membership is to participate in the Online Fingerprint Verification System, a project which began in 2007 as a partnership between the major banks, SABRIC and the Department of Home Affairs to curb fraud.