According to recent reports, Apple is going to replace Touch ID with facial-recognition technology on the iPhone, and it might start things off with the iPhone 8.
The thing is, it's not exactly as reliable as fingerprint security, which is evidenced by the workarounds to the Samsung Galaxy S8's iris scanner.
For what it's worth, Apple's technology won't be the same as Samsung's. It will use 3D sensors, allowing the camera to recognize depth and verify the user's entire face, after all. That's according to "people familiar with the product."
At any rate, that means it's possibly more secure than what we've seen with Samsung's iris scanner, but it's hard not to worry about security flaws since Apple did penetrate the banking industry with Touch ID.
In other words, this could be a bad idea if it's true.
Samsung's Iris Scanner Is Foreboding
As mentioned earlier, Apple's reported security feature is different from Samsung's iris scanner in which it uses 3D sensors to authenticate the user's face. Still, the two are arguably comparable.
That said, Apple's 3D facial recognition technology could pose similar security problems that the iris scanner did.
Back in March, YouTuber MARCIANOTECH managed to unlock the Galaxy S8 using a photo. The action starts at the 1:09 mark.
More than that, media.ccc.de also showed off how to "hack" the Galaxy S8's iris scanner.
In Samsung's defense, it did implement the iris scanner for the sake of convenience rather than security, where users can't use it to carry out mobile payment, which is something that Apple's 3D facial recognition technology sets out to do.
Sudden Switch From Touch ID Could Spell Security Problems
Apple's Touch ID was one of the key factors to bring secure mobile payments to the table, so this development comes across as odd, particularly why the company wants to scrap it moving forward.
Put simply, applying a new authentication method will require a couple of new hoops to go through, and it's still unclear how Apple intends to make the jump.
For instance, Apple Pay could be limited to only iPhones with Touch ID until the 3D facial recognition technology is deemed secure enough to be used for mobile payments, but that's just mere speculation at this point.
To boil things down, an iPhone without Touch ID is less secure than an iPhone with the feature, but of course, it's still unsure whether or not Apple is really going to remove it, not to mention that it's still unclear whether the 3D facial recognition technology would indeed be more secure.
