Fingerprint Sensor

How to add a fake fingerprint sensor to iOS 7

Jeff Benjamin ∙ March 27, 2014

No, that wasn't a typo. There's a new jailbreak tweak available on Cydia that allows you to fake the functionality of a fingerprint scanner on your iOS 7 device. Geared towards folks without a Touch ID enabled device like the iPhone 5s, this tweak does its best to fake the security benefits of a fingerprint scanner.

If only it were possible to actually fake the security of the Touch ID sensor. Spoiler: it's not. And as such, this tweak, ironically entitled Bio, falls squarely into the mix with other "joke" jailbreak tweaks used for comedic effect. Have a look at our video walkthrough after the jump to see Bio in action.

Apple reportedly working on iOS update to improve Touch ID

Cody Lee ∙ February 28, 2014

As cool as the fingerprint reader is on the iPhone 5s, it's not perfect. We have, on several occasions, complained about the accuracy of Touch ID seemingly 'fading' over time, and a number of 5s owners have turned out to Apple's support forums to voice their disdain as well.

Luckily, it sounds like there may be light at the end of the tunnel. AppleInsider is reporting this morning that the Cupertino company is currently preparing a software update that will improve the fingerprint recognition experience of Touch ID, and possibly fix the 'fade' issue...

Samsung unveils new Galaxy S5 with heart-rate monitor, fingerprint scanner and more

Cody Lee ∙ February 24, 2014

Out of all the major manufacturers presenting new products at Mobile World Congress this week, no keynote was more highly anticipated than Samsung's Unpacked 5 event. The South Korean company is the hottest name in Android right now, and it was expected to unveil its latest flagship smartphone.

And it delivered. This afternoon, Samsung introduced the new Galaxy S5 handset to a packed auditorium in Barcelona, Spain. There were no paid TV hosts or Broadway dancers this time around, just Samsung leadership up on stage talking about the smartphone they built for the year 2014 and beyond...

Rumor: Galaxy S5 to integrate fingerprint scanner into Home button, not as sophisticated as Touch ID

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

Apple paid big bucks to acquire AuthenTec, the world's leading maker of fingerprint sensors. Following the $356 million deal, it took Apple's teams an additional year or so to apply AuthenTec's technology to Touch ID. An in-house project, Touch ID has rethought what fingerprint scanning on mobile devices should be like, resulting in a seamless and integrated solution that, in Apple's parlance, "just works".

That's not saying Touch ID isn't without pitfalls.

Apple cautions that fingerprint scanning doesn't work well with greasy or wet fingers and there are reports of old people's prints not being recognized properly as a result of a few decades worth of scarring and general wear and tear.

Despite rumors that Samsung's upcoming Galaxy S5 would feature iris scanning, KGI Research analysts instead pointed to a fingerprint sensor.

And now a publication called SamMobile says it's been able to confirm with a Samsung source that the feature will work by swiping one's finger over the handset's redesigned Home button. It would let users unlock the device by swiping and remember website passwords, the latter not (yet) being supported by Touch ID...

Rumor: TSMC to start churning out Touch IDs for the next iPhone this summer

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 14, 2014

According to industry sources, Apple has seemingly commissioned Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) to build Touch ID fingerprint sensors for a next-generation iPhone, dubbed by the press the iPhone 6.

The manufacture of the sensors should start in the second quarter of 2014 at TSMC's twelve-inch fab, using the company's 65-nanometer process, according to a report the Asian industry publication DigiTimes filed on Tuesday...

Meet FingerLoc, AuthenTec’s bulky and unreliable Touch ID predecessor

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 16, 2013

After Apple had snapped up AuthenTec, an Israel-based NFC and smart sensor maker, for about $400 million in the summer of 2012, speculation abounded as puzzled pundits couldn't envision Touch ID coming. Shortly after, Apple told AuthenTec's clients such as Samsung to buy their sensors elsewhere.

It also shuttered the startup's Embedded Security Solutions division while tasking AuthenTec engineers with rethinking fingerprint scanning on mobile. The results were nothing short of amazing: Apple has managed to take competition by surprise by seamlessly integrating the sophisticated Touch ID sensor into the iconic Home button, a far cry from the unreliable solutions that require you to swipe the sensor.

One publication was lucky enough to have been invited to a private presentation of an early Touch ID prototype by the AuthenTec co-founder F. Scott Moody...

HTC’s new ‘One max’ with fingerprint sensor launches to poor reviews

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

It was bound to happen. You knew that once the iPhone 5s debuted with a fingerprint sensor, other manufacturers would follow suit. No, Apple wasn't the first to implement such a feature, but it has a way of mainstreaming stuff like this.

Today, HTC unveiled the 'HTC One max,' a 5.9-inch smartphone that includes a dedicated fingerprint sensor. Located on the rear of the device, the feature is activated via a swipe and can be programmed to recognize 3 different fingers...

Fingerprint sensors coming to Android devices in the next 6 months

Sébastien Page ∙ October 3, 2013

Of course it was just a matter of time. As always, Apple wasn't first to market, but it was the first to make fingerprint sensors a popular technology that will be used in many future devices. This shift is happening barely two weeks after the iPhone 5s launched. Can't innovate my ass!

But six months from now Barrett says he will be able to choose from the latest Android models that will come equipped with a biometric sensor capable of letting him swipe his fingerprint to access a wide range of his online accounts.

That's the scenario being proactively pursued by the FIDO Alliance, a group of 48 tech companies, led by PayPal and Lenovo, hustling to implement a milestone technical standard.

Read the full article on USA Today (via The Verge)

Samsung’s own Touch ID is at least a year away

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 25, 2016

Despite its unreal size, Samsung of South Korea is an extremely agile company, one that moves at a blistering pace. The conglomerate has been called many things and is perhaps best-known as a fast-follower. The press attached that nickname to the Samsung brand due to the company's ability to swiftly apply what others are doing to its own lineup and flood the market with countless products with small variations to them.

For example, Samsung announced its own gold Galaxy S4 variants merely two weeks following Apple's September 10 iPhone 5s/5c keynote. And just 48 hours into Apple's double iPhone announcement, Samsung co-CEO Kim Yoo-chul was quick to confirm his company's next smartphones will have 64-bit processing functionality, even if “not in the shortest time".

But now, Samsung has incomprehensibly decided to sit on the sidelines and watch instead how this fingerprint scanning thing on mobile unfolds...

Expert says ‘average consumers’ shouldn’t worry about Touch ID hack

Cody Lee ∙ Updated May 4, 2017

Over the weekend, a group of hackers called the Chaos Computer Club announced that it had managed to bypass Apple's Touch ID system using the popular 'fake finger' method involving a hi-res photograph, and pink latex milk.

As you'd expect, the announcement has caused quite a commotion, and has a lot of folks concerned. But according to security expert Marc Rogers, they shouldn't be. He says the average consumer has nothing to worry about...

Hacker group bypasses Apple’s Touch ID with ‘fake finger’ technique

Cody Lee ∙ Updated September 23, 2017

A group of German hackers called the Chaos Computer Club has reportedly figured out a way to bypass Apple's new Touch ID fingerprint sensor using a variation of the long-running 'fake finger' technique.

The method involves taking a high resolution photo of the original user's fingerprint, printing it on a transparent sheet with a thick toner setting, and then filling it in with pink latex milk. Here, watch the video...

Apple details Touch ID: no on-device fingerprints, 48-hour wipe, doesn’t like moisture

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 29, 2016

Apple left a few important questions unanswered regarding its all-new fingerprint sensor implemented on the iPhone 5s, called Touch ID. The useful feature stems from Apple's 2012 purchase of Israeli-based biometric security experts AuthenTec. In a nutshell, Apple strives to easily and securely authenticate users into their device and approve purchases from the iTunes Store, App Store or iBookstore - simply by scanning their finger on the Home button.

What happens next is anyone's guess. Neither Apple's website nor available promotional material reveals much in way of detail. Perhaps sensing a privacy scare in the making, Apple dispatched its spokesperson to dispel any notion that the new iPhone might expose users to security risks...