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Android is getting more secure with Google Identity Check that backs your PIN with a finger scan

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By Daniel Petrov

Published: Oct 16, 2024, 8:42 AM

Android

Google will be making it harder for anyone to access your Android device in an unauthorized manner by leveraging biometrics as an extra protection layer. The Google Identity Check option that is in development will require a fingerprint scan in addition to a PIN number, or a password.

The feature will be something users can choose to participate in, according to Android Authority, rather than be imposed on them for various reasons, like a slow or ineffective fingerprint scanner.

With it, however, Android's security will be greatly increased as it will not just rely on biometrics that, let's face it (pun intended), can be easily overcome by forcing the phone owner to press their finger against the screen or look at the camera.

Besides the upcoming Identity Check, Google has more privacy and security protection features in tow, such as the much touted Theft Detection Lock that is arriving to Android phones as we speak and prevents people from grabbing your handset and leaving with it.

Identity Check will use both PIN and fingerprint scan to unlock. | Image credit – AA

Google is smart enough not to enable those features in your average trusted location, though, but will turn Identity Check on when it senses that your phone is located outside its familiar zone.

In that, the option is similar to Apple's Stolen Device Protection. Google has mentioned that the extra PIN or password unlock protection layer with biometrics known as Identity Check will be coming later this year, probably when Android 15 hits your handset, as it requires changes to the system core.

Afterward, you can opt into the Identity Check feature and make sure that your phone asks for a fingerprint scan after being unlocked with a PIN when it is outside trusted locations like your home or workplace, but how exactly are those going to be tracked, remains to be seen in the final implementation

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Daniel, a devoted tech writer at PhoneArena from 2010 to 2025, has been engrossed in mobile technology since the Windows Mobile era. His expertise spans mobile hardware, software, and carrier networks, and he's keenly interested in the future of digital health, car connectivity, and 5G. Beyond his professional pursuits, Daniel finds balance in travel, reading, and exploring new tech innovations, while contemplating the ethical and privacy implications of our digital future.