California: Apple released security guidelines about Face ID — the iPhone X feature that allows users to unlock the device just by looking at it. Apple said that the probability of a random person unlocking an iPhone X with Face ID is 1 in 1,000,000 versus 1 in 50,000 for its previous fingerprint sensor. If you are under 13 or have a twin, it might not be a good idea to use the Face ID unlocking system on Apple’s new iPhone X.
“The probability of a false match is different for twins and siblings that look like you as well as among children under the age of 13, because their distinct facial features may not have fully developed. If you’re concerned about this, we recommend using a passcode to authenticate,” wrote Apple in its Face ID security guidelines.
It noted that for added protection there can only be five unsuccessful face match attempts before a user is required to put in a passcode. The new technology found in the iPhone X relies on its TrueDepth camera that looks at 30,000 infrared dots on a user’s face to create the biometric facial image.
A artificial intelligence chip embedded in the phone does the work to match a user’s face and thus unlock the device.
According to Apple, Face ID still works if the user is wearing hats, scarves, glasses, contact lenses and a slew of different sunglasses. The company said in the security guidelines that an additional neural network is trained to identify and resist attempts to trick the system and unlock the device via photos or masks. The Face ID data also resides on the user’s phone and is encrypted, reducing privacy concerns.
Apple said infrared images of a user’s face captured during enrollment and mathematical representations of the user’s face calculated during enrollment are the only data sets saved.
The updated guidelines are aimed at quelling any concerns about the security and safety of the new feature on the iPhone X. — Agencies
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