July 14, 2022
What is a Biometric Time Clock?
A biometric time clock uses your unique biometric features to identify you and clock you in and out of work. It can do this by scanning your unique features such as facial patterns, fingerprints, and even your iris.
We most commonly see biometric scanners on our mobile devices. Nearly all modern devices use biometric scanners to check your identity and ensure your phone’s security.
The same principle applies to biometric time clocks. They use scanners to verify your identity, restrict access to buildings, and help administrators keep track of their employees’ hours.
As people clock in and out, the data is automatically transferred to a cloud-based timesheet, giving managers and administrators instant access to important information.
If we’d have talked about this kind of technology not long ago, you might have thought we were talking about a James Bond movie, but today, it’s extremely common practice. Biometric scanners can verify a person’s identity in a matter of seconds, making the best biometric time clocks an efficient way to keep track of employee hours.
Types of Biometric Time Clocks
Biometric time clocks scan for unique human characteristics, so they’re not limited to any one type of body part. The most common scanners we see today are facial recognition, fingerprint, and iris.
Facial Recognition
In today’s world, facial recognition is the primary technology used for things like biometric employee time clock. That’s because they’re not just accurate and convenient, but very difficult to fool so they can prevent buddy bunching.
Facial recognition scans the contours of your face to verify your identification. Each human face is unique, so by mapping the measurements of certain facial features, a facial recognition time clock can be very accurate with its identification.
The best biometric time clock for facial recognition uses unique technology that a person's facial data is collected only as digitally encoded information, so employee's face cannot be reproduced as a photographic image.
You don’t need to scan a card or enter a pin, and you don’t even need to get your finger out of your pocket. All you’ve got to do is look into the scanner, and just like that, you’ve clocked into work. Employees simply stand in front of a facial recognition biometric clock and it verifies the employee’s face in seconds while recording their time punches.
There is no need for employees to touch the clock to punch in or out. Since a facial recognition time clock has contactless punch operation, it can help to eliminate the spread of germs and viruses between individuals in the workplace. It helps with social distancing too, since there are no lines at the clock because it only takes seconds to clock in and out.
For the best biometric time clock, it’s hard to beat facial recognition.
Fingerprint Scanning
When biometric security came onto the scene, fingerprint scanning was at the forefront of it.
I’m sure we all remember the first phone we bought which had fingerprint scanning. It was pretty cool, and also meant we didn’t constantly have to type our passcodes into our phones.
While fingerprint scanning has been surpassed by facial recognition in terms of convenience, it’s still a very effective tool for the best biometric time clock systems. Everyone has a unique fingerprint; they can’t lose it (like a card), they can’t forget it (like a pin), and it ensures people are who they say they are.
Iris Recognition
The human body is quite amazing. There are so many features that are completely unique to each individual, and one of them is the iris.
Just as with facial recognition and fingerprint scanning, biometric time clocks can use iris recognition to create a high-contrast image of a person’s eye. When an employee comes to clock in, the scanner simply compares the iris of the person being scanned to images in its database, and when it finds a match, that person is clocked in.
Recently in the news, security researchers have reported it is possible to trick or bypass iris scanners. Facial recognition is generally preferred in biometric time clocks because it’s easier to implement and more affordable. To be as accurate and foolproof as facial recognition, Iris recognition requires more complex technology and expensive equipment, and since facial recognition is more than accurate enough for employee time and attendance, Iris scanning is generally not used for this purpose.
How Does This Fit with Employee Time and Attendance?
Verifying people’s identities is just the first part of time and attendance tracking.
Once the person has been clocked in or out, that information has to be synced to an easy-to-access, editable timesheet. This allows administrators to check employees’ hours and make sure they’re correct before sending them on to payroll.
This means one of the most important aspects of the best biometric time clocks is the time clock software.
The software isn’t just important for administrators though, it’s also very useful for the employees themselves. They want to be able to have access to important data just as administrators do, and employee time and attendance software like PayClock Online can facilitate this:
- View shifts worked
- View total hours worked
- View PTO accrual
- Make time off requests
With the right employee time & attendance software, a biometric time clock can become much more than something that creates time stamps. It can become a useful point of information for employees, helping them to keep track of their schedule and plan their hours.
When implemented well, biometric time clocks can make all areas of time and attendance more efficient, ensuring accurate pay, and boosting employee morale.
What is the Best Employee Time Clock?
As we mentioned, one of the most important parts of a time clock is the time clock software. This is what’s going to result in greater efficiency in your time and attendance processes.
That’s why PayClock Online is compatible with all our time clocks, meaning no matter what hardware you choose, you’re going to get an efficient, accurate time clock.
This allows you to choose the type of time clock that works best for your business.
For maximum convenience and accuracy, it’s hard to look past facial recognition for the best biometric time clocks though. It’s extremely accurate, meaning you eliminate issues like buddy punching, and it gives employees no excuses (you can’t forget your face).
Because it’s so convenient for employees to use, it’s also likely to increase compliance, helping you to keep more accurate records.
The great thing about this is that the technology isn’t overly expensive. It may seem quite high-tech, but it’s now widely available, making it a perfect option for your time clock.
How Does the Clock-In Process Work for Biometric Time Clocks?
Clocking in on a biometric time clock is very simple.
The first part of the process is creating a sample that will be stored in the system. To do this, you’ll probably meet up with an administrator who will talk you through the process and take a scan of your face, fingerprint, iris, or whatever biometric feature the time clock uses.
The system doesn’t store an image of your biometric feature. Instead, it records certain data points, which is important for security and helps to keep employees’ information safe.
Once the software has a record of your biometric features, then you can simply clock in using the time clock by placing your finger on a scanner or looking into a camera. The system will compare the live image to its files, matching you with your employee details.
For employees who are out of the office or work from home, you might find this works a little differently.
Newer time and attendance software works with physical biometric time clock devices for employees clocking in at the office as well as mobile smartphone apps if employees are remotely traveling out of the office. This means employees can use both devices, the biometric time clock and the time clock smartphone app, no matter where they are.
The Best Biometric Time Clock: Software is Key
Time and attendance software is there to make your business more efficient
Yes, it’s important that you have accurate, convenient biometric scanners, but the main thing is what happens with the information they collect. This is all controlled by the software, and it should make life easy for your administrators.
You want to be able to automate as much of the process as possible. You can’t afford to be creating and editing spreadsheets before manually going through payroll. You want to be able to click a few buttons and watch everything get done for you.
With software like PayClock Online, this is exactly what happens, meaning your managers and HR have more free time to get on with other important jobs.
Click here to learn more about PayClock Online's biometric employee time clock systems.