Proxiz

Coming soon. Prototype demonstration planned for April 2027.

A hardware key that signs you in only where you are meant to be.

Proxiz is a personal hardware key for standard WebAuthn sign-in. It signs only when two things are true: it can read a valid token from the beacon in the protected room, and your fingerprint matches on the key. The system is being designed now and built in early 2027.

How it works See the build plan
Proxiz sign-in logic The Environment Beacon token and the fingerprint match feed an AND gate. Only when both are valid does the Proxiz Key sign the WebAuthn challenge, and the website signs the user in. If the key is outside the room, there is no valid token, the key does not sign, and sign-in is blocked. Key inside the protected room Key outside the room: no beacon token Every sign-in is checked again Beacon Token valid No valid token Fingerprint Matched on key AND Proxiz Key Website WebAuthn Waiting Signed in Blocked

Concept diagram of the current baseline. Hardware choices are still open and will be fixed at concept selection.

How the system fits together

A stolen password, or a stolen key used somewhere else, should not be enough to sign in. Proxiz ties each sign-in to the person and to the room, and leaves the website itself unchanged.

  • Proxiz Key

    Carried by the user

    Checks the fingerprint on the device. A secure element holds a private key that cannot be exported and signs the sign-in challenge only when both checks pass.

  • Environment Beacon

    Fixed in each protected room

    Broadcasts a rolling token over Bluetooth Low Energy that changes every 30 seconds. A tamper switch raises a local alarm and alerts the security team if the beacon is opened or moved.

  • Software bridge

    Runs on the computer

    A background service and browser extension pass the challenge between the key and a standard WebAuthn website. No changes are needed on the website side.

Design targets

The prototype will be tested against these acceptance targets. They are goals set in the project plan, not measured results. Results will be published here after testing.

Source: Proxiz Project Management Plan, acceptance targets. Testing takes place in Capstone II.
ParameterTargetCondition
Sign-in time< 3.0 s95th percentile
False accept rate< 0.001 %5 users, 50 attempts each
False reject rate< 1 %5 users, 50 attempts each
Beacon detection≥ 95 %Within 5 m
Rolling token30 s ± 1 s0 successful replays in 100 attempts
Tamper alert< 1.0 sBeacon opened or moved
Battery life≥ 8 hAbout 50 sign-ins per charge

Build plan

Design and planning run through fall 2026. Implementation and testing follow in winter 2027. This page is updated as each milestone closes.

Capstone I: Design and Planning

  1. Problem definition and opportunities

    September 2026Complete

    Design problem, market research, opportunity scoring and mission statement.

  2. Customer needs and target specifications

    October 2026In progress

    User-needs hierarchy, then a target specification matrix traced back to each need.

  3. Threat model and concept selection

    November 2026

    STRIDE threat model and risk register, then concept selection, including the microcontroller and fingerprint sensor.

  4. Detailed design

    November to December 2026

    Engineering analysis, schematics, initial bill of materials and the final Capstone I design package.

Capstone II: Implementation

  1. Build, test and demonstrate

    January to April 2027

    Prototype build and integration, testing against the design targets above, and a working demonstration.

Who is building it

A two-person engineering team, each leading one side of the system.

  • Harikant Sharma

    IoT, Embedded Systems and Hardware Lead

  • Aastha Mistry

    Cybersecurity, Cryptography and Systems Architecture Lead

Project details
ProgramBachelor of Engineering, Information Systems Engineering (Honours)
InstitutionHumber Polytechnic, Faculty of Applied Sciences and Technology
SupervisorProf. Faruk Erkmen & Prof. Ali Taha
CoursesENGI 4000 Capstone I, ENGI 4500 Capstone II
StatusIn development