Apple has applied for a patent for a system that uses the Touch ID or Face ID biometric authentication facility on its phones to unlock a car... More
Apple patent allows drivers to secure vehicles with Touch ID on their phone
Face ID
Apple adds support for Express Card NFC transactions that work even when an iPhone’s battery is almost flat
Apple’s just-published iOS 12 security guide has revealed a new feature which will see owners of the latest iPhones able to conduct some NFC transactions even when the device has all but shut down because the battery needs to be charged... More
India to add face biometrics to Aadhaar national ID platform
Will introduce ‘Face ID’ on July 1 for Aadhaar authentication, UIDAI tells Supreme Court — The Hindu — “The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) informed the Supreme Court on Thursday that it will introduce ‘Face ID’ on July 1 to enable Aadhaar holders to authenticate their identity to access services, benefits and subsidies. The ‘Face ID’ would help people without biometrics or those with poor biometrics to avoid authentication failures and financial exclusion.”
Apple to let iPhone X owners use Face ID to approve kids’ purchases
iPhone X owners will soon be able to use Face ID to approve family purchases — The Verge — “In iOS 11.3, purchase approvals on a parent’s device can be done through Face ID, after a one-time request to enter their password. Previously, iPhone X owners found the Ask to Buy iOS feature that allows parents to control what children buy with their phone didn’t work with Face ID. Parents had to enter their passwords manually for every purchase, to the chagrin of many customers.”
Apple details its face detection algorithm
An on-device deep neural network for face detection — Apple — “Apple started using deep learning for face detection in iOS 10. With the release of the Vision framework, developers can now use this technology and many other computer vision algorithms in their apps. We faced significant challenges in developing the framework so that we could preserve user privacy and run efficiently on-device. This article discusses these challenges and describes the face detection algorithm.”
Video shows that children could use Face ID to unlock their parents’ iPhone X
This 10-year-old was able to unlock his mom’s iPhone using Face ID — The Verge — “While Apple has admitted that false positives can happen, it was thought this could only happen with twins, or siblings under the age of 13. However, a new video has popped up showing a 10-year-old unlocking his mother’s iPhone, suggesting that any family members who bear enough resemblance might be able to bypass the system.”
Cybersecurity firm demos mask that can unlock an iPhone X
This $150 mask beat Face ID on the iPhone X — The Verge — “Vietnamese cybersecurity firm Bkav claims it’s been able to bypass the iPhone X’s Face ID feature using a mask… The firm does stress that the product is just a proof of concept at the moment and more research is needed… ‘Exploitation is difficult for normal users, but simple for professional ones,’ Bkav said.”
Commbank adds Face ID to mobile banking app
The new face of banking — Commonwealth Bank of Australia — “From today, iPhone X users will be able to use Face ID to securely log in to the CommBank app. ‘Our customers use secure fingerprint logins on the CommBank app about 30m times a month,’ said Pete Steel, Commonwealth Bank executive general manager of digital. ‘Extending that functionality to Face ID is part of our ongoing work to provide a better banking experience to our customers through simple, easy and secure features.'”
Face ID reported to take longer to unlock an iPhone than Touch ID
iPhone X Face ID slower than Touch ID (but there’s a fix) — Tom’s Guide — “I’ve been using Face ID on the iPhone X for more than 24 hours, and I don’t need a stopwatch to tell you that it unlocks my phone slower than when I was using Touch ID on my older iPhone 7 Plus… It took 1.2 seconds from pressing the side button to the iPhone X’s screen turning on and for the phone to recognize me and unlock the device. And it was another 0.4 seconds to swipe up to get to the lock screen. Total time: 1.8 seconds.”
Face ID for Apple Pay gets thumbs up in pre-release review
The first first impression of the iPhone X — Wired — “I really liked Apple Pay with iPhone X — having to double-click on the side button and then use Face ID was a clearer way to do transactions.”
Apple: No change to Face ID quality and accuracy
Apple says claim that it reduced accuracy of Face ID to meet demand is ‘completely false’ — Techcrunch — “The statement from Apple: Customer excitement for iPhone X and Face ID has been incredible, and we can’t wait for customers to get their hands on it starting Friday, November 3… The quality and accuracy of Face ID haven’t changed. It continues to be one in a million probability of a random person unlocking your iPhone with Face ID.”
Apple cuts Face ID performance to address iPhone X production issues
Inside Apple’s struggle to get the iPhone X to market on time — Bloomberg — “As of early fall, it was clearer than ever that production problems meant Apple Inc wouldn’t have enough iPhone Xs in time for the holidays. The challenge was how to make the sophisticated phone — with advanced features such as facial recognition — in large enough numbers… Apple came up with a solution: It quietly told suppliers they could reduce the accuracy of the face-recognition technology to make it easier to manufacture.”
Face ID to add privacy layer to lockscreen notifications
iPhone X and iOS 11 bring a welcome change to iOS lockscreen notifications — Phone Arena — “The Apple iPhone X will only show lockscreen notifications with actual content when it knows you are the one who is watching and if it’s somebody else, they will only see the notification source, but not the notification content itself (which might be sensitive).”
Apple to drop Touch ID in 2018?
Apple predicted to ditch Touch ID for Face ID with 2018 iPhone lineup — AppleInsider — “Apple is going all in on Face ID, according to well-connected KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who believes the company will completely abandon its Touch ID capacitive fingerprint recognition system in favor of the depth-sensing technology when it introduces next year’s iPhone lineup.”
Apple publishes Face ID security white paper
Face ID Security — Apple — “To authorize an in-store payment with Face ID, you must first confirm intent to pay by double-clicking the side button. You then authenticate using Face ID before placing your iPhone X near the contactless payment reader. If you’d like to select a different Apple Pay payment method after Face ID authentication, you’ll need to reauthenticate, but you won’t have to double-click the side button again.”
US iPhone users ‘unlikely’ to use Face ID for payments
40% of Apple users to spurn facial recognition, according to Juniper survey — Juniper Research — “A new survey conducted by Juniper Research has found that over 40% of iOS users in the US consider themselves unlikely to use facial recognition as a payment security technology… Contactless payment users considered fingerprint sensors and voice recognition more appealing authentication methods, with 74% and 62% respectively saying they are likely to use these technologies.”
Apple: Developers must offer an alternative to Face ID for children
New App Store guidelines crack down on iOS ‘virus scanners’, require alternatives to Face ID for under-13s — 9to5Mac — “Apple has updated its developer app review guidelines for the iPhone and iPad App Store this week with new clauses addressing the appropriate usage of Face ID, ARKit and more… Developers using the LocalAuthentication framework to enable Face ID unlock (in the same way apps can already use Touch ID authentication) must offer an alternate method of unlock for children under the age of 13 to use.”
Apple to release Face ID security paper
Interview: Apple’s Craig Federighi answers some burning questions about Face ID — Techcrunch — “Federighi also noted on our call that Apple would be releasing a security white paper on Face ID closer to the release of the iPhone X. So if you’re a researcher or security wonk looking for more, he says it will have ‘extreme levels of detail’ about the security of the system.”
Apple engineering chief answers Face ID queries
Apple’s Face ID feature works with most sunglasses, can be quickly disabled to thwart thieves — Macrumors — “‘If you don’t stare at the phone, it won’t unlock,’ he wrote. ‘Also, if you grip the buttons on both sides of the phone when [you] hand it over, it will temporarily disable Face ID.'”
US Senator asks Apple CEO to clarify Face ID privacy concerns
Sen Franken presses Apple to address privacy concerns over iPhone X’s ‘Face ID’ technology — Senator Al Franken — “Substantial questions remain about how Face ID will impact iPhone users’ privacy and security, and whether the technology will perform equally well on different groups of people. To offer clarity to the millions of Americans who use your products, I ask that you provide more information on how the company has processed these issues internally, as well as any additional steps that it intends to take to protect its users.”
