Move Over Face ID, Palm Recognition Is Here

Every year, the world tunes in to hear about the new products that technology companies like Apple, Samsung, or Tesla are releasing. One of the hottest topics of debate this year was Apple’s release of 3 iPhones, something that they and other technology companies have never done before. The phone at the center of attention was Apple’s most premium iPhone created, the iPhone X, whose most anticipated feature was Face ID. Face ID is a facial recognition form of biometric scanning. It works by processing your facial features, using your face as the password to unlock your phone. The introduction of a facial biometric scanning option for a smartphone was unprecedented and has remained a controversial topic of debate. The Face ID when tested by reviewers was capable of being tricked and the flaws that come with it are at the center of debate. Almost everyone is familiar with biometric scanning. On almost every smart device (iPhone, Galaxy, and even iPads) there is a form of biometric scanning. The use of biometrics to unlock your technological devices has taken over technology and the entirety of smartphones. The most common form of biometric scanning that almost everyone has or experienced is a form of Touch ID. Touch ID is a fingerprint recognition feature that is available on most of Apple’s products. With a simple press of your finger on the home button, your phone will be able to scan your fingerprint and unlock your phone.

Is Samsung trying to maintain a competitive edge?

Apple’s main competitor, Samsung, may be investing in an innovative approach to biometric scanning for smart devices to compete with Apple’s Face ID. “Recent patent filings by the South Korean electronics giant show that the company may be investing in yet another means of biometric scanning.” The patent filed shows a device that scans the palm of your hand, and if the palm belongs to the correct user it will reveal password hints. Although, this was the only feature filed for a patent, the possibilities can definitely extend beyond password hints. Palm scanning may be the key to unlocking your phone. Apple’s most premium phone, the iPhone X, has taken out other forms of biometric passwords and security, leaving the Face ID as the only option. This may be the case for Samsung as well, if they develop the technology and implement it into their smartphones. In depth biometric scanning, such as Face ID and palm scanning will become a common biometric scanner, just like the normalization of Touch ID. The debates that center around Face ID is what information is being shared with governments and how Face ID can be tricked if the phone is stolen. If Face ID acts as the password to unlock your iPhone, Apple will have a database storing everyone’s biometric password. This is just the start. Although Apple is the only one to pioneer this type of technology, other tech companies will most likely be following suit. The trend of Touch ID is over and soon it may be Face ID or palm scanning. These smartphone companies having access to millions of people’s faces in one database sounds like a nightmare, and an opportunity that governments will seize if given the chance. These technology companies have done their best to protect their customers privacy. We have seen the scandal and criticism Apple went through when they blatantly refused the FBI’s request to unlock the San Bernardino shooter’s iPhone.The knowledge that this ‘database’ will have people’s faces on it, the government may see it as an opportunity to help them track down missing persons or criminals, leading to the invasion of our privacy. These same issues of concern over privacy can be applied to the biometric capabilities in palm reading that we may see in Samsung phones soon. Original Source: Futurism Image: The Verge