The honourees will be recognised during the 2020 SIA Gov Summit, SIA’s annual government security conference, which will be hosted as a free virtual event June 1-4. On June 3 attendees will enjoy a special keynote panel session honouring the award winners – The Women in Biometrics Awards Presents the Future of Biometrics in Government Security Applications.

The Women in Biometrics Awards honour the efforts of top female leaders helping drive the biometric identity and security industry. Nominees and past winners include those working for biometric companies, peripheral suppliers, system integrators, academia, government and security and IT departments at a variety of organisations in the United States and internationally.

The 2020 winners of the Women in Biometrics Awards are:

Jeni Best, Branch Chief, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)

Anne May, Biometric Support Center Lead, Identity Operations Division, Office of Biometric Identity Management (OBIM), U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

Mei Ngan, Computer Scientist, Image Group, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

Lauren Reed, Senior Program Director for Biometric Forensics, IDEMIA National Security Solutions (NSS)

Annet Steenbergen, Co-Founder, Aruba Happy Flow Project

“Each year, the Women in Biometrics Awards recognise the best and brightest talent helping to advance biometrics technologies, which are essential to securing identities today, and the achievements of these female industry leaders are improving processes like air travel, enhancing cutting-edge fields like facial recognition and working to keep people safe,” said SIA CEO Don Erickson. “SIA applauds the 2020 honourees for their impressive dedication, innovation and leadership in this critical technology market and looks forward to honoring this outstanding group during SIA Gov Summit.”

“Once again, the 2020 class of Women in Biometrics Award winners astound me with their contributions to the security industry and society in general,” said Chris Corum, editor and publisher, Secure ID News. “Their collective work keeps international borders secure, fights terrorism, aids law enforcement and makes our daily lives safer and more convenient.”

SIA Gov Summit – the annual government security conference hosted by SIA – brings together government security leaders and private industry technologists for top-quality information sharing and education on security topics affecting federal, state and even local agencies.