By the SightShield team · · 3 min read
The everyday problem
In almost every office, a few employees struggle to punch in every morning. It wastes time, causes missed punches and disputes, and tempts people to ask a colleague to mark attendance for them. The causes are usually simple.
Common causes and fixes
| Cause | Fix |
|---|---|
| Dry skin, especially in winter | Rub fingers together or breathe on them; use a little moisturiser earlier in the day |
| Wet or sweaty fingers | Dry fingers before punching |
| Worn ridges from manual work, cement, chemicals or age | Re-enrol a less-used finger; consider face recognition |
| Cuts, burns or plasters | Use another enrolled finger |
| Poor original enrolment | Re-enrol with the finger flat and centred, several samples |
| Dirty or scratched sensor | Clean the sensor with a soft dry cloth; replace if scratched |
| Pressing too hard or too lightly, or at an angle | Place the finger flat and still until confirmed |
| Direct sunlight on the sensor | Shade or relocate the device |
Enrol more than one finger
Enrol at least two fingers per person — usually index fingers of both hands — so there is always a fallback. Re-enrol people with repeated failures, taking care to capture the centre of the fingerprint.
A better enrolment routine
- Clean the sensor before you begin.
- Ask the person to wash and dry their hands, or wipe fingers.
- Place the finger flat, centred, covering the whole sensor window — not just the tip.
- Capture all requested samples, shifting the finger slightly between them.
- Test immediately: the person should be recognised three times in a row before you finish.
- Enrol a backup finger on the other hand.
Cleaning and caring for the sensor
- Wipe the sensor with a soft, dry, lint-free cloth daily in busy locations.
- For stubborn grime, use a cloth very lightly dampened as the manufacturer allows — never spray liquid on the device.
- Do not use abrasive cloths, which scratch the sensor surface.
- Keep the device out of direct sunlight and away from dust sources.
- Replace a scratched or damaged sensor; it will never read reliably again.
When to switch to face recognition
If more than a few people fail regularly — common in factories, construction, hospitals and among older staff — moving to face recognition solves the problem at its root. Many face terminals accept fingerprints too, so you can migrate gradually.
Face vs fingerprint attendance →When many people suddenly fail
If the machine starts rejecting many people at once, the problem is the device, not the fingers. Check whether the sensor is dirty or damaged, whether the device has been moved into sunlight, whether a firmware update changed settings, and whether the user database was restored from an old backup. A technician can check the logs and settings quickly.
Attendance Systems for Hospitals and Clinics →Device settings
Matching thresholds can be adjusted, but lowering them too far increases the risk of false acceptance. Leave threshold changes to the installer and fix enrolment and sensor cleanliness first.
See our biometric service →Handling missed punches fairly
Even with a good system, some punches will be missed. Set up a simple regularisation process in your attendance or HR software: the employee requests a correction with a reason, the manager approves it, and the change is logged. This keeps records accurate and avoids arguments at payroll time.
Attendance with HR software →Quick answers
Why does my fingerprint work some days and not others?+
Skin moisture changes daily. Dry or sweaty fingers are the most common reason for intermittent failures.
Can fingerprints really wear out?+
Ridges can become faint with manual work, chemicals and age, making them hard to read.
Should we lower the matching threshold?+
Only as a last resort and by the installer; it can let wrong people match.
Can the same machine do face and fingerprint?+
Many current terminals support face, fingerprint, card and PIN together.
Can I clean the fingerprint sensor with sanitiser?+
Do not spray sanitiser on the device. Use a dry or very lightly dampened soft cloth as the manufacturer allows; harsh chemicals can damage the sensor coating.
Why can children and elderly people be hard to read?+
Children’s fingerprints are small and still changing; older people often have faint ridges and dry skin. Face recognition usually works better for both.