This disclosure is of a biometric authentication system and method. The system includes a mobile device having a camera and a screen, and a database. The system is programmed to superimpose on the screen an overlay of a finger over a real-time image seen by the camera, capture an image of a fingerprint of a user with the camera, compare the captured image with an authenticated fingerprint image that is stored in the database, and return a positive result if the compared images match.