A fingerprint security flaw detected last week from Samsung’s Galaxy S10 and Note 10 phones has been fixed. The company had announced on Friday, last week that it would fix the flaw on its fingerprint scanner this week.
According to reports, the company has now developed a fix and is starting to roll it out to users globally.
The troubling issue came to light after an error was discovered by a British woman whose husband was able to unlock her phone with his fingerprint just by adding a cheap screen protector.
A U.K. news report had shown how nothing more than a simple screen protector could defeat the in-display ultrasonic fingerprint scanner on Samsung’s high-end S10 and Note 10 devices.
It seems that the textured surface on the inside of some silicon screen protectors fooled the phones’ biometric authentication system, allowing any fingerprint to unlock the device instead of only the owner’s.
Sequel to the fix, Samsung plans to send notifications to S10 and Note 10 owners to inform them of the available software update. The message will also instruct owners to delete any fingerprints stored on the device and to register new ones without any protector on the display.
According to a message on its app, the Korean tech giant insisted it takes “the security of products very seriously and will make sure to strengthen security through continuous improvement and updates to enhance biometric authentication functions.”
Users with affected handsets who are yet to receive a notification from Samsung about the fix have been advised to switch off the fingerprint scanner for now and use an alternative method for unlocking the device.
This can be done by heading to Settings, tapping Lock Screen and then Screen Lock Type. Next, enter your PIN, password, or pattern to confirm, and then tap the button beside Fingerprints to disable the fingerprint scanner. Finally, choose a different unlock method from the list.
