You’ve got it exactly. I love the idea of this feature, not as a barrier to some phone hacker but as a barrier to some random dude who finds my phone wherever I lost it.
Technically proficient people usually don’t steal phones in the first place… because odds are they already have a better phone than you do.
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I give what I think are memorable/logical “clever” answers to the security questions, but two years later when I need them I find that I was too clever…
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It’s still what we guard really important stuff with, though.
Most people who steal phones aren’t doing it to keep the phone for themselves though, are they? Usually it’s stolen in order to quickly turn around and sell it on Craigslist.
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Complication: the guard needs both enough job security and job satisfaction to remain loyal.
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I would assume most tech thieves work in pairs or groups, so one knicks your phone, the other holds you down, and the first guy grabs your hand to rub your phone on it.
I’ve tried to use the maiden name one before, but have had systems tell me “your profile has indicated you are male”
And I think one called me out for not being married.
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Fingerprint ID systems are really only viable for people whose fingertips aren’t a constantly changing constellation of cuts, scars, burns, splinters and embedded pieces of metal.
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Thing is I worry about now is breaking my arm and having a full cast over it.
Who am I kidding, I have always worried about that
{please do not use this against me NSA}
I’d think extracting information that is instantly verifiable would be easier than extracting something vague like a “terror plan”:
(Thwack) “WHAT’S THE PASSWORD?”
“qwertyuiop”
(tap tap tap) … “WRONG ANSWER!” (Thwack crunch crack)
“aaaaaah, ok ok it’s hunter12”
There are two kinds of people I worry about stealing my phone
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random thieves, especially if I dropped the phone somewhere or got pickpocketed. They don’t care about my personal data, they just want to resell the phone for a few bucks (and Craigslist will look at you real funny if you try to sell “iPhone 5S with Unlocking Finger and no power cord”.) It’s just a phone, and the cell phone company should be running the “permanently block the phone if you report it stolen” service.
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Police / border guards / etc. who want my phone so they can get my personal info. They can force me to submit to fingerprinting, and can probably force me to unlock it. That’s a lot more annoying.
If your trying to go through the bone your doing it wrong. Typically the blade is cutting between the joint(look at pictures of yakuza missing fingers). If the finger collector is a real clueless nutter or just a brutal monster a hatchet or heavy cleaver type knife should cut the finger bone easily enough. Granted with out actually trying it, I’d bet batoning(using a piece of wood like a baton to hit the knife blade) would work even with a pocket knife.
I can’t help but point out that a slice of finger-tip is all you’d need. Don’t tell anyone where you heard this, please.
The point ist that the mugging victim will struggle and not place his hand on a hard surface.
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