A global survey of consumer attitudes to using biometrics found a 5 percent increase in people who favor the use of biometrics as a preferred method of identity verification. Some 10 percent of individuals in the Asia-Pacific region would even prefer a chip implanted in their body.

The survey, conducted by Unisys, surveyed 1661 people globally, with 12 percent of the respondents in Australia. Convenience, according to 83 percent of respondents, was the main reason for using biometrics on a smartcard and three quarters said speedy verification is the main driver for biometric adoption.

Supporters of biometrics were mainly in the North American region (71 percent) followed by Europe (69 percent) and the Asia-Pacific region including Korea, Taiwan and Japan had approval from 68 percent of respondents.

Terry Hartmann, Unisys director of secure identification and biometrics, said the research is revealing because many people seem to question biometric adoption due to legitimate privacy concerns.

"Despite some geographical and cultural differences with certain specifics of the technologies, overall as more and more people learn about biometrics, convenience seems to outweigh other concerns," Hartmann said.