Pentagon Signs Deal for Smart Phone Scanning App

Would be able to analyze face, eyes, voice and thumbpring

In a few years, the soldier, marine or special operator out on patrol might be able to record the facial features or iris signature of a suspicious person all from his or her smartphone — and at a distance, too.

The Defense Department has awarded a $3 million research contract to California-based AOptix to examine its "Smart Mobile Identity" biometrics identification package, Danger Room has learned. At the end of two years of research to validate the concepts of what the company built, AOptix will provide the Defense Department with a hardware peripheral and software suite that turns a commercially available smartphone into a device that scans and transmits data from someone's eyes, face, thumbs and voice.

"They've asked us, based on what they've seen of our product, to work on some more specific needs and requirements for DoD," Chuck Yort, AOptix's vice president for identity solutions, tells Danger Room. Data security for the system will be provided by partner CACI International, which shares in the $3 million contract, which will be officially announced Wednesday morning.