Touch ID

There's an Emergency SOS feature built into iOS 11 that has hidden functionality -- it automatically disables Touch ID and makes it so your passcode has to be entered to unlock your iPhone. Because it essentially shuts down the biometrics on your device, you can't be compelled by a police officer or malicious person to unlock your iPhone with a fingerprint, nor can your fingerprint be used to...

Although more prominent features like Night Shift and a few new Quick Actions are getting the spotlight with the launch of iOS 9.3, one new lesser-known update is definitely worth checking out. In iOS 9.3, Apple has improved the functionality of its first-party Notes app with the ability to add password or Touch ID security for individual notes. The feature allows users to prevent access to...

Samsung has decided not to include a fingerprint scanner under the display of its next-generation Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ smartphones due to continued technical difficulties, according to South Korea's The Investor. Instead, the fingerprint scanner will likely remain positioned on the back of each device, just like the current Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ models. Fingerprint scanning is one...

Apple today updated its official Apple Store shopping app with the ability to use Touch ID to securely and conveniently pay for an order with a credit card tied to an Apple ID, as well as make changes to account settings. The Apple Store app has long allowed shoppers to pay for purchases with the credit card associated with their Apple ID, but users needed to type their password for...

Apple has successfully finalized a solution to integrate Touch ID fingerprint recognition directly into the display of its upcoming "iPhone 8", according to a new report on Friday. Chinese-language Economic Daily News (EDN) said it spoke to sources from Apple supplier Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), who apparently confirmed Apple's achievement during a technology convention...

Apple's rumored "iPhone 8" with an OLED display and wireless charging will continue to have Touch ID, but there is a "high chance" it will be on the back of the smartphone, says Hong Kong-based equity research firm CLSA. "iPhone 8" mockup with rear Touch ID sensor by Benjamin Geskin An excerpt from a research note distributed this week by CLSA analysts Sebastian Hou and Brian Chen:iPhone to...

MasterCard today unveiled a biometric chip-and-pin credit card featuring a built-in fingerprint sensor that takes cues from mobile payment systems such as Apple Pay. The card can be used to make purchases like any other, except rather than keying in a PIN number, card holders can choose to place their finger over the square sensor to approve the transaction. Alternatively, users can take a ...

Apple may be forced to eliminate Touch ID from the tentatively named "iPhone 8" altogether if it cannot resolve issues with integrating the fingerprint sensor underneath the smartphone's display within the next month or so, according to Andy Hargreaves, equity research analyst at Pacific Crest Securities. "iPhone X" concept by designer Gabor Balogh Hargreaves isn't the first analyst to think...

Apple's supposed "biggest bottleneck" in preparing to mass produce the rumored 5.8-inch iPhone with an edge-to-edge OLED display remains integrating Touch ID underneath the display, according to a research note from Cowen and Company analyst Timothy Arcuri obtained by MacRumors. Arcuri, citing his own "field work" within the supply chain, said the current yield of Apple's in-house AuthenTec-b...

Apple is set to feature its own in-house developed integrated fingerprint ID technology in the OLED version of its next iPhone, according to a new report out on Friday. Apple's upcoming "iPhone 8" is expected to feature a virtual home button embedded in the display, but questions persist over the role of Touch ID in such a radical redesign, as conflicting reports from analysts, rumors of biomet...

One of the more contentious iPhone 8 rumors we've seen recently is the claim that with the removal of the Home button, Apple will ditch its Touch ID fingerprint recognition technology and replace it with another form of bio-recognition hardware. While several possible alternatives have been put forward – such as iris scanning, facial recognition, and even a combination of technologies –...

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office today granted Apple a patent that describes a display capable of reading a user's fingerprint without a dedicated Touch ID sensor (via AppleInsider). The patent is interesting given current rumors swirling around the iPhone 8, which is expected to do away with the home button and integrate Touch ID directly into the display, but perhaps more noteworthy is the...

In a new case that echoes Apple's past struggle with the FBI, the Department of Justice has been granted a warrant to search a home in Lancaster, California -- and all the smartphones inside of it -- for all "passwords, encryption keys, and other access devices that may be necessary to access" the various handsets and tablets discovered inside the location. Notably, this includes requiring every...

Apple is investigating ways that future iOS devices could store the biometric details of suspected criminals in cases of theft (via AppleInsider). An Apple patent published today by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office describes "Biometric capture for unauthorized user identification", by using an iPhone or iPad's Touch ID feature, camera, and other sensors. The proposed system augments...

FIS and Payment Alliance International have announced a new partnership that will see cardless withdrawals with Touch ID enabled at over 70,000 ATMs at stores, gas stations, restaurants, and shopping malls across the United States. FIS Cardless Cash is a QR code-based solution that will reduce the risk of card skimming and shoulder surfing at ATMs by allowing customers to securely withdraw...

Unlocking an iPhone via Touch ID in lieu of a passcode makes it much easier to maintain security while preserving convenience, and Touch ID's ease of use has left many Mac users wondering when a similar feature might be introduced for Apple's desktop and notebook machines. There has been speculation Apple might introduce dedicated Touch ID fingerprint scanning hardware for the Mac, but as it...

Apple recently added a new passcode requirement rule for iPhones with Touch ID enabled, according to MacWorld. The new rule requires a user to enter a passcode when an iPhone or iPad has met two conditions: the device has not been unlocked via a passcode for six days and has not been unlocked with Touch ID for the past eight hours. Users (including this reporter) began noticing this change...

For the first time in a federal case, authorities in a Los Angeles courtroom have issued a search warrant forcing a woman to bypass her iPhone's biometric security using Apple's Touch ID system (via LA Times). The woman in question -- Paytsar Bkhchadzhyan -- was arrested due to charges of identity theft and had previous strings of various criminal convictions. According to jail records, U.S....

During a Friday call with reporters where Apple discussed the security of iOS devices, Apple shared some interesting statistic on iPhone unlocking that were highlighted this morning in a report from Ben Bajarin (via The Verge). According to Apple, the average iPhone user unlocks his or her iPhone 80 times per day, and 89 percent of iPhone users who have access to Touch ID have set it up and...

A video that has gone viral which claims to reveal a glitch allowing anyone to unlock a passcode-protected iPhone has been exposed as false. The YouTube clip, called "iPhone Unlock Without Passcode Glitch", depicts a user gaining access to a Touch ID-equipped device by first asking Siri what time it is. When the spoken request brings up the time, the user taps on the clock face to reveal...

Norwegian police will force a 27-year-old man accused of drug possession to unlock his mobile phone via fingerprint, according to local website Bergensavisen [Google Translate]. The police believe the confiscated smartphone may contain evidence about where he obtained the illegal substance. The man, who reportedly admitted he was culpable, has refused to unlock his phone for police since...

Apple has been working to acquire the intellectual property assets of Charlottesville, Virginia-based biometric security firm Privaris, according to CNN. Privaris recently transferred 26 of its 31 patents to the iPhone maker, including 4 patents in December 2012 and dozens more in October 2014. The patents are primarily related to fingerprint and touchscreen technology that could lead to Touch ...