[Going The Distance]

Is it possible that the NSA may be able to get peoples finger prints with Apple's new finger print scanner. The phone must save it to be able to reconize it. What do you guys think?

[just_luc]

That's a pretty good question.. I'm just pulling this answer out of my rear end, but I'd say it's certainly possible..

[felixweber]

Apple says no. Like all the other tech companies once said no.

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[Jerale Hoard]

Just scan your fingerprint and they have access to everything.

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[anon62607]

Is it possible that the NSA may be able to get peoples finger prints with Apple's new finger print scanner. The phone must save it to be able to reconize it. What do you guys think?

I can't imagine they couldn't get your fingerprints through the 50 other times you've been fingerprinted in your life.

[trwrt]

They said the fingerprint info stays on the phone and is never transmitted. So, they'd have to steal your phone, which has your fingerprints all over it anyway.

[app_Developer]

Apple says the match is done in hardware, and that the fingerprint data is not accessible at all from the OS level. The reference information is stored on the A7.

Now, if you believe that Apple is lying or that the NSA has it's own hardware level snooper in the SoC itself, then yes the NSA has access to all your stuff.

[Andrew4life]

lol, I was just talking to my friend the same way. Easy way for the NSA to get access to millions of fingerprints identified to a specific user.

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[just_luc]

I can't imagine they couldn't get your fingerprints through the 50 other times you've been fingerprinted in your life.

Why have you been finger printed so many times? LOL

Maybe it's an American thing, but I've never been finger printed lol.. I don't have an aversion to it, it's just never come up..

[anon62607]

Why have you been finger printed so many times? LOL

Maybe it's an American thing, but I've never been finger printed lol.. I don't have an aversion to it, it's just never come up..

concealed handgun license, various background checks, CRC prior to forward deployment and so on.

[just_luc]

concealed handgun license, various background checks, CRC prior to forward deployment and so on.

Ah.. yea, must be an American thing.. I've had many a background check.. criminal record checks etc.. none of the above require finger prints here. Not sure about gun licensing.

[anon62607]

Ah.. yea, must be an American thing.. I've had many a background check.. criminal record checks etc.. none of the above require finger prints here. Not sure about gun licensing.

how are they able to verify that you are who you say you are when conducting the background check? that seems a little strange that they can conduct a criminal record check on whatever identity it is you claim to be with no biometric literal verification

[LopeZ10]

Is it possible that the NSA may be able to get peoples finger prints with Apple's new finger print scanner. The phone must save it to be able to reconize it. What do you guys think?

I read somewhere that the NSA could access to your computer via your iPhone so i do not think that there is honest NO for tis question.

[ianbordas]

LOL wow I never thought about that! Fingerprint info will be stored, therefore will easily be used by Apple or any 3rd party companies willing to pay for it... not to mention what the NSA can do with that.... just scary.

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[just_luc]

how are they able to verify that you are who you say you are when conducting the background check? that seems a little strange that they can conduct a criminal record check on whatever identity it is you claim to be with no biometric literal verification

For most things it's just 2 pieces of ID.. usually any two of drivers license, Social Insurance Number.. (social security number) passport, credit card, birth certificate.. none of which required biometrics to get either.. I'm not in government.. can't tell you what the rational is.. but it seems to get the job done. I'm not saying there's no identity theft here, but certainly not more then there is there..

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[BB10QNX]

They already have their digital fingerprint ;-)

[PPTY]

Please everyone just use your own "common sense" before you allow anything or anyone to take a digital scan of your fingers.

Think of it this way:

What happens when you create a normal typed password for your email account, or your phone, or for a website -- and then that password gets "hacked"? For example, if your password was: "SecretCode123," and someone figured that out (whether through trial-and-error with computer software, or whatever), then they could login and pretend they were you using that machine or website.

When you found out that your password had been "stolen," you could then contact the website administrators, or the company security department, and then SIMPLY CHANGE YOUR PASSWORD. Any other evil-doers who got a copy of your stolen original password would no longer be able to use it.

For example, you could create a new password, "AbraCadabra987."

But the problem with fingerprint scans (or any biometric "security," like eye-scans, DNA scans, or face-scans) is that once your fingerprint or other body part is turned into a digital code, if (when) that ever gets copied or stolen, YOU CAN NEVER CREATE A NEW FINGER.

Please, just think about this using your own common sense before you compromise your identity and security forever.

The true issue here is NOT about "the NSA," or whatever spy agency. Spies spy, that's what they do and have always done. That's a different issue, so feel free to move this thread to "biometrics" if necessary. The more common issue today is that some hackers in Russia, or China, or in the basement of their parent's house in Canada, or wherever, some hackers will EVENTUALLY steal the digitized biometric codes, and no doubt those digitized body-part codes will then be sold or passed around through the shadiest corners of the Internet, used by other evil-doers to make fraudulent purchases, and to wreak who-knows what other havoc, impersonating innocent people who will NEVER be able to "create a new fingerprint." Greedy malicious thieving fraudster hackers, not just spy agencies, will victimize the people who have their "bio codes" forever stolen!

Don't take my word or logic for it, just think about how biometrics actually work.

One the surface the marketing tries to make it look so futuristic and high-tech, but really it's just a gimmick, a dangerous gimmick.

It doesn't matter if it's Apple, Android, Blackberry, whatever, the problem is with how all biometrics themselves work: whether a machine is scanning your fingertips, your eyes, your face, or your DNA, ultimately it just turns that information into digital code. That code is processed and stored in some way. That's the problem. When eventually someone hacks in to steal and copy the electronic version of your fingerprint, eyes, face, DNA, other body part, the digital version of that part of your body's identity is COMPROMISED FOREVER.

THERE ARE NO REPLACEMENT FINGERPRINTS / EYES / FACES / DNA / OTHER SCANNABLE BODY PARTS.

ONCE THEIR DIGITIZED CODES ARE STOLEN AND COPIED THAT PART OF YOUR BODY'S "IDENTITY" IS FOREVER COMPROMISED.

That is why biometrics by themselves will NEVER be enough to secure anything, and in fact, biometrics improperly used actually CREATE security problems!

If you've already figured that out, then please educate your loved ones, friends, and family. Kids, and teens, and seniors are especially vulnerable.

I am not against Apple, and this is not a problem specific to Apple. This is a basic failure of biometrics on any machine.

Biometrics provide a surface illusion of being high-tech security, but in fact biometrics dangerously and potentially FOREVER compromise someone's identity.

Think about it: You know EVENTUALLY someone somewhere is going to start stealing fingerprint IDs from iPhone 5S. And when those unfortunate people who naively allowed their fingerprints to get digitized by their iPhones try to deny that the online purchases the hackers made are not really them, how will they prove themselves when there will be dozens (or thousands) of evil-doers all over the planet with a copy of their fingertips pretending they are the "real" them?

This is just so horribly reckless on the part of Apple, I'm sorry to see the era of Steve Jobs is so obviously completely over at Apple.

I'm deeply saddened and disgusted that Apple has chosen to jeopardize its customers' identities for the sake of luring the innocent with a recklessly dangerous gimmick.

The way the fingerprint digitizer was built-into the "home" button -- disguised into the "home" button" -- so that it's unavoidable on the iPhone 5S, makes that recklessly dangerous deliberate design absolutely reprehensible and repugnant to common sense and basic decency.

Why Apple Inc.? Why? Why????????

[app_Developer]

Why Apple Inc.? Why? Why????????

Holy enormous font size, batman.

Did it occur to you that the phone could be storing a hash of the fingerprint pattern, which would really only be useful then for verification of your fingerprint, not reproduction of it?

Please walk us through the details of the exploit you're thinking of. A normal font size would be awesome for those of us on tablets.

[just_luc]

I knew I should have worn my tinfoil hat today..

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[u4ria]

Why have you been finger printed so many times? LOL

Maybe it's an American thing, but I've never been finger printed lol.. I don't have an aversion to it, it's just never come up..

When you cross into the US, if you require any sort of visa, you will be electronically finger printed. So...if the NSA wants that information, they could easily get it from DHS. But, for those who've never been finger printed in the USA, this would seemingly be a perfect way for the NSA to illegally acquire the information.

Don't you find it funny that the US Gov publicly stated that any form of electronic terrorism or attack against them would be consider like an act of war. Yet they release Stuxnet against Iran, and the NSA has electronically attacked other countries including Canada to steal information that they consider to be "intelligence". Hypocrisy at its finest.

[gfondeur]

how are they able to verify that you are who you say you are when conducting the background check? that seems a little strange that they can conduct a criminal record check on whatever identity it is you claim to be with no biometric literal verification

I been background checked a few times and no one required fingers prints,

[anon62607]

I been background checked a few times and no one required fingers prints,

bizarre.

[tchocky77]

This subject is so tired.

If the NSA wants access to your data, they'll get it. And it matters not a whit what kind of phone you use.

[SubCamp]

No expert but I'm going to take a very logical and realistic guess and say, YES

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[Going The Distance]

This subject is so tired.

If the NSA wants access to your data, they'll get it. And it matters not a whit what kind of phone you use.

That is true bu,t it seems like you're handing it to them if you use the finger print scanner on the 5s.