Samsung Galaxy S10 has its own share of problems despite offering some great value to consumers. But the latest issue with the Galaxy S10 sure puts its owners at great risk as a bug allows anyone to bypass the in-display fingerprint scanner security with a simple trick.
UK publication The Sun reported that a British couple discovered a serious problem with their Galaxy S10 that allowed them to unlock the device with any fingerprint, even when it is not registered. The only thing they did was apply a third-party screen protector from eBay costing £2.70.
Lisa Neilson was able to unlock her new Galaxy S10 with her left thumbprint when she'd only registered the right one. Later, she asked her husband to try unlocking the device with his fingerprint and both his thumbs were able to unlock the phone. To further investigate the matter, Neilson checked her sister's Samsung device and found the issue was not limited to her phone.
"This means that if anyone got hold of my phone they can access it and within moments could be into the financial apps and be transferring funds," Neilson told the Sun.
Samsung has acknowledged the problem and it is working on a software patch to fix the fingerprint recognition glitch on its latest flagship device. There's no word on when we can expect the update to arrive but considering the sensitivity of the matter, it shouldn't too far away.
"Samsung Electronics is aware of the case of the S10's malfunctioning fingerprint recognition and will soon issue a software patch," the company told Reuters. It's not clear if the Galaxy S10+ and Galaxy Note 10 series, which use the same in-display fingerprint scanner technology, are affected by this glitch.
The reason for the glitch is unknown, but the company said that it is possible that some protectors that come with silicone cases are recognised along with fingerprints. The Galaxy S10 features an ultrasonic sensor to authenticate fingerprints and plastic or silicon screen protectors can cause malfunction. But that's not a justification that sounds valid in any logical sense as a fingerprint that's not even registered on the device is able to unlock it.
Whatever might be the case, until a software patch is made available for this glitch, we strongly recommend users rely on passcode to protect sensitive data, banking credentials and more on their phones.
