According to Technorati tech listed blog Mashable, that warm, secure feeling Apple tried to give iPhone up-graders over its fingerprint unlock feature is rapidly growing cold.
Mashable writer Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai reports that a Berlin-based hacker group known as the Chaos Computer Club says they've successfully hacked past an iPhone 5S's fingerprint scanner using a technique that Club member Starbug developed long ago.
The 9-year old process involves photographing a user's left-behind fingerprint and reprinting it in reverse on a transparent sheet with thick toner. Flesh-toned latex or even wood glue is poured into the areas between the print, and slightly moistened using a short breath. Apply the sticky printout to a reader to unlock.
The announcement comes just days after Technorati listed blog Huffington Post reported on a contest that offers up to $13,000, booze, bit coins and other prizes to the first individual who hacks his or her way past the iPhone's fingerprint security system.
Starbug has been warning security firms to stop using fingerprints as a means of safeguarding information or entry ever since he figured out how to get around the security process.
In order to thwart Apple's high-tech offering, Starbug simply had to bump up the image capture resolution to 2400 dpi, and the printing process to 1200 dpi.
The security group behind the $13,000 hack prize are awaiting video confirmation showing off the process from the Chaos Computer Club, to make a final determination on their claim.
Images assembled from US News, Christie Wildes
via Technology articles at Technorati http://feeds09.technorati.com/~r/tr-technology/~3/7dakoseLmpY/