Face ID is probably one of the handiest security features a phone could have, but it looks like it’s still not quite foolproof as the guys in Vietnamese cyber-security research firm Bkav managed to crack it once again.
The researchers managed to fool Face ID with a 3D printed mask of the expert’s face which cost about $150 in materials and is made of stone powder. The mask also has infrared images of the person’s eyes glued onto the mask to trick the camera into thinking that it is, in fact, looking at real eyes.
Following their experiments, Bkav recommends that VIPs like National Leaders and other high profile personalities be cautious about securing their phones with Face ID and states that they deem that Face ID isn’t secure enough to be used in business transactions.
Of course, making a mask in this manner just to fake a facial login is a pretty far-fetched thing to do, as most people don’t have access to the equipment needed to make a high-quality facsimile of a person’s face, even less a good quality image of the person’s face from all angles.
However, Apple could possibly add something like the “liveness check” that was introduced on Android Jellybean that requires the user to blink while looking at the phone to unlock. An extra step yes, but it might make Face ID even more secure than it currently is.