Apple may be preparing to unleash a new way for OS X users to unlock their Macs. That new approach takes the company's existing technology to essentially tighten the Apple ecosystem.
All it takes is a touch and a scan, executed in the blink of an eye, to unlock an iPhone that has Apple's fingerprint reading Touch ID installed. There's no need to remember any pin code, passwords or patterns — a touch is all it takes.
Touch ID initially found work in providing security services for virtual wallet platform Apple Pay, but now it appears Apple is about to get more mileage out the fingerprint reader.
Planned for inclusion in the upcoming release of OS X 10.12 is a feature that'll let iPhone owners unlock their Macs with the Touch ID sensors on the smartphones, according to a report from MacRumors. Presumably, the functionality would also be imparted to iPads that have Touch ID sensors.
"Apple engineers are designing an auto unlock function that would allow an iPhone to unlock a Mac when in close proximity, alleviating the need to enter a password on a password-protected Mac," the report states.
The report suggests that the remote unlock feature would likely work like a paired Apple Watch and iPhone, in which unlocking the phone would automatically open up the watch. Going from there, it might even be possible for a user to unlock his or her Mac via Apple Watch and with the iPhone located somewhere else.
Supporting the Apple Watch's role in the remote unlocking feature is the impending launch of web support for Apple Pay. The mobile payments platform may leverage that remote unlocking infrastructure to enable consumers to use their Apple Watches to verify purchases made via Apple Pay's web interface.
So the remote unlocking feature would have two primary uses: remotely opening desktops and confirming payments. Those would also be two more reasons to own a Mac, an Apple Watch and iPhone for one interconnected, uniquely Apple experience.
Apple is set to show off OS X 10.12 next month at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference .
