“As noted by German-language security blog H Security, SRLabs has posted video evidence that the fingerprint scanner on Samsung’s Galaxy S5 can easily be spoofed using a lifted print,” Zach Epstein reports for BGR. “In mere minutes, the group was able to create a ‘dummy finger’ using an actual fingerprint to gain unauthorized access to the phone.”
“Some might recall that Apple’s iPhone 5s fingerprint scanner was hacked using the same method,” Epstein reports. “As SRLabs points out, however, the Galaxy S5′s fingerprint security implementation makes this hack far more dangerous.”
“With Apple’s Touch ID system, users are required to input their password one time before using a fingerprint for authentication. The password must be used again once each time the device is rebooted. This extra step seems annoying, but it prevents the very spoof achieved by SRLabs,” Epstein reports. “On Samsung’s Galaxy S5 however, no password is needed to access the device. Even after a reboot, a simple swipe of a finger will unlock the phone. And what could be much more alarming is the fact that, even after a reboot, users don’t need a password to access PayPal and make payments through the app if it has been configured for fingerprint authentication.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Silly half-assed imitators. Smirk.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers “Fred Mertz” and “Bill” for the heads up.]
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