The idea of using “biometric” data to protect your data is a fairly old one. The problem is that the majority of existing technology is not really biometric; instead it is a simple scan and compare function that has little to do with true biometric identification. Because this is the case scanners like the one on the iPhone can be fooled with a sample that matches the resolution of the scanner.
The “hack” was very simple and only required the use of a fingerprint that was photographed on a glass surface. This means that someone could easily grab your fingerprints from everyday items. In their post on the subject the CCC says: “Apple had released the new iPhone with a fingerprint sensor that was supposedly much more secure than previous fingerprint technology. A lot of bogus speculation about the marvels of the new technology and how hard to defeat it supposedly is had dominated the international technology press for days.”

In fact the CCC has a how to for anyone that wants to try this at home. This is not good news for Apple who has been trying to play off the new security feature as something special. “But you do it because making sure no one else has access to your iPhone is important. With iPhone 5s, getting into your phone is faster, easier, and even a little futuristic. Introducing Touch ID — a new fingerprint identity sensor”. Unfortunately, as we have just said, there is nothing really “new” about it as a hacker with the nickname of Starbug says; “In reality, Apple's sensor has just a higher resolution compared to the sensors so far. So we only needed to ramp up the resolution of our fake”.

Apple’s reality distortion field simply cannot hold up under the scrutiny that they are continually under. Tim Cook’s recent claim about Apple needing to innovate or they will fail comes to mind again with this new revelation. They really do need try and come up with a new idea and build some new technology and features rather than just trying to push minor upgrades to existing technology on the consumer.

Tell us what you think in our Forum