Gait and Body Biometrics: New Forensic Tool in EU Murder Case

Published Date : 9/15/2025 

Gait recognition has reached a significant milestone as a forensic identification method, being accepted as admissible evidence in a murder case in an EU country. This breakthrough technology, developed by Cursor Insight, combines traditional gait biometrics with 3D body dimension analysis for unprecedented accuracy. 

Gait recognition has reached a significant milestone as a forensic identification method with the recognition of the biometric modality as admissible evidence in a murder case in an EU country. This breakthrough has the potential to revolutionize how forensic investigations are conducted.

A combination of traditional gait biometrics with 3D body dimension analysis delivers stronger accuracy than fingerprint, voice, iris, or face biometrics, according to Ákos Molnár, Marketing Manager at Cursor Insight. The technology developed by the company has an equal error rate (EER) below 0.1 percent, making it one of the most accurate biometric modalities available today. Molnár explains that the technology is a hybrid of physical and behavioral biometrics, combining movement and 3D body analysis.

A murder committed on a dark night in a European country was caught on a pair of unsynchronized night-vision cameras. The cameras were approximately 30 meters away from the subject, providing only 10-by-5 pixels worth of data. The poor lighting, angle, and facial occlusions made forensic facial recognition impractical for suspect identification. Police identified two suspects, with footage of both captured while walking and one of them captured while running. One of them fired the gun in question, but which?

Cursor Insight obtained reference recordings of each suspect that allowed the company to build biometric profiles of them. Gait biometrics can use more than 100 dynamic parameters and more than 50 static ones in lab conditions, Molnár explains. However, the low quality of the footage available limited Cursor Insight to 31 parameters in this case. The previous recordings were also not the best quality, with one recorded in a shop with a CCTV camera, where the whole body was not visible.

One of the thirty-one metrics gave an equal indication of which suspect was the gunman. The other 30 all indicated the same individual pulled the trigger. Cursor Insight submitted a forensic report when the case was filed, which was accepted as evidence by the court. The case is now headed to trial, and two of Molnár’s colleagues will travel to give expert testimony during the proceedings.

In theory, gait and body structure biometrics can identify people wearing masks or helmets. Cursor Insight is currently working on performing the same kind of biometric identification in just such a case, involving several suspects. The company explains its measurements of gait biometrics’ accuracy in a recent blog post. The company scored an EER of 1.7 percent across two independent datasets, but the calculation is based on only a single step. Molnár notes that if more steps are available, even with only 30 parameters, the accuracy is still around 99 percent.

While gait and body structure biometrics can theoretically make false matches, they do so infrequently, making their accuracy closer to a modality like fingerprints than one like facial recognition, according to Molnár. Admissibility of this technology as evidence varies across different jurisdictions in Europe. In regions where it is not admissible in court, Molnár still sees potential for gait and body structure biometrics as an investigative tool. Cursor Insight has had discussions with law enforcement agencies in North America, Australia, and South America, including about the new case noted above.

Cursor Insight approached gait biometrics as a provider of motion analysis that was already well-established for e-signature verification, which is used by a major bank in Central and Eastern Europe. The company’s portfolio also includes continuous behavioral biometric authentication software, based on cursor motion. Molnár sees potential in applications like access control. His company is attempting to make headway on those different use cases, which could include security for defense facilities or critical infrastructure, with something of a first-mover advantage.

While other organizations have developed gait biometrics, Molnár believes they are not the same, and not just because they do not use 3D reconstruction. Most of them claim to be gait recognition systems, but they can only distinguish if an animal is walking on the street, or a person, car, or something similar. This level of identification, Molnár asserts, does not exist as far as he knows. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS): 

Q: What is gait recognition?

A: Gait recognition is a biometric technology that identifies individuals based on their walking pattern. It uses dynamic and static parameters to create a unique biometric profile.

Q: How accurate is gait recognition?

A: Gait recognition can be highly accurate, with an equal error rate (EER) below 0.1 percent in some cases, as demonstrated by Cursor Insight. The accuracy can vary based on the quality of the footage and the number of parameters used.

Q: Can gait recognition identify people wearing masks or helmets?

A: Yes, gait and body structure biometrics can identify people even when they are wearing masks or helmets, as it focuses on movement and 3D body analysis rather than facial features.

Q: How is gait recognition being used in forensic investigations?

A: Gait recognition has been accepted as admissible evidence in a murder case in an EU country. It is used to identify suspects based on their walking patterns and body structure, even when facial recognition is not possible.

Q: What other applications does Cursor Insight see for gait recognition?

A: Cursor Insight sees potential for gait recognition in various applications, including access control, security for defense facilities, and continuous behavioral biometric authentication. 

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