What is Windows Hello?

"Microsoft face authentication in Windows 10 is an enterprise-grade identity verification mechanism that's integrated into the Windows Biometric Framework (WBF) as a core Microsoft Windows component called Windows Hello." [1]

Introduced by Microsoft in July 2015, Windows Hello is a feature that allows for facial recognition sign-on to your Microsoft devices running Windows 10 and later. Windows Hello supports biometric authentication using your face, iris, or fingerprint to unlock your devices.

Why use Windows Hello Face?

Security

The most attractive feature of Windows Hello is that it is much safer than the use of a traditional password. Passwords are often reused and forgotten, and some are even easily guessable.

In addition to this, Windows Hello helps to eliminate large-scale hacking operations, password theft, and identity theft. Passwords are stored on servers that can be hacked, intercepted, or breached.

Windows Hello provides a reliable, fully integrated authentication based on facial recognition. This recognition uses special cameras that use infrared light sensors. This IR light allows the camera and device to reliably tell the difference between a photograph/scan and a living human being which eliminates any need for a traditional password.

Convenience

By using Windows Hello, you can login quickly and seamlessly. Once set up with a compatible webcam, the user only needs to allow the camera to scan their face to unlock their device. The authentication process takes less than 2 seconds[2] to unlock your device. You'll no longer need to memorize passwords or worry about storing them securely.

How it Works

Once setup, there are 4 main steps in the Windows Hello facial recognition process:

1. Find the face and facial landmarks: the Windows Hello algorithm detects the user's face via the camera stream and locates facial landmark points corresponding to eyes, nose, mouth, etc.
2. Head orientation: To correctly identify your face and authenticate it, Windows Hello ensures the user is facing the device +/- 15°.
3. Representation vector: Windows Hello uses the user's facial landmarks as anchor points to take thousands of samples from different areas of the face to build a representation. This representation is - at its most basic form - a histogram that represents the light and dark differences around specific points. Note: no image of your face is ever stored.
4. Decision engine: Once there is a representation of the user as outlined in step 3, this representation is compared to the enrolled users on the physical device. This representation must cross a machine-learned threshold before the algorithm will accept it as a correct match and grant the user access to the device. If there are multiple users enrolled on the device's system, this threshold will increase accordingly to help ensure that security is not compromised.

(Source: Microsoft.com)

Does Windows Hello work with any webcam?

Unfortunately, not every webcam has the capability of being used in conjunction with Windows Hello. Webcam facial recognition is not a universal functionality. In order for you to be able to use the Windows Hello facial recognition sign-on, your device needs an infrared (IR) camera.

Many new laptop models come with this functionality built-in. If you would like a higher-quality experience or if you're not ready to upgrade your device, consider CODi's newest webcam the Allocco HD 1080p IR Facial Recognition Windows Hello Webcam. This HD webcam boasts a high-definition resolution, and clear audio, along with supporting Windows Hello sign-on that makes it perfect for personal use, enterprise use, video conferencing, streaming, and more.

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Sources:

[1], [2]: Microsoft.com, "Windows Hello face authentication"