Implications of the forthcoming forensic sciences standard ISO/IEC 21043 for forensic biometrics

The forthcoming forensic sciences standard ISO/IEC 21043 is a methodological and technical standard, currently at the stage of Draft International Standard. When adopted, it will apply to all forensic disciplines, including forensic biometrics. This standard has been designed by forensic, legal, and standardisation professionals to ensure that forthcoming forensic services, products, and systems are safe, reliable, and consistently perform as intended. The aim of this contribution is to present to the forensic biometric community some of the implications of adopting ISO/IEC 21043 for the forensic biometric discipline.After an introduction (§ I) and a review of the existing international standards applied in forensic science (§ II), the five-part structure of ISO/IEC 21043 is described: 1. Terms and definitions, 2. Recovery, 3. Analysis, 4. Interpretation and 5. Reporting, (§ III). Then a selection of requirements and recommendations of this five-part standard are highlighted, and their implication for forensic biometric research, development, implementation, and practice is discussed (§ IV).The conclusion is that the adoption and use of ISO/IEC 21043 will help forensic laboratories to reach accreditation and to enhance their existing quality management systems. It will also make it easier for forensic biometric researchers to develop, deliver, and implement more relevant, more reliable, and safer services, products, and systems to the forensic biometric examiners performing casework (§ V).