Once the preserve of science fiction, biometric facial recognition has now become a reality, according to the BBC.

"Despite its association with the controversy of identity cards, it is predicted to become part of everyday life.

A few corporations are already scanning pictures of staff for access control or to tackle swipe card fraud. And six police forces have so far recognised its use in identifying CCTV pictures of suspects - one claims it to be the biggest forensic breakthrough since DNA.

As companies become more security conscious, the process of having our faces scanned is set to become more commonplace. And new technology which can produce this in a more accurate 3D form could accelerate this trend.

A firm which has developed the 3D software, Aurora, claims it is sophisticated enough to distinguish between identical twins.