S9 Plus Face unlock when eyes are closed

[userPgzejSIFfN]

Hi,

Anyone facing this issue in S9 Plus - when using the face unlock, the phone unlocks even when eyes are closed?

Even when Iris scan is enabled, it unlocks when eyes are closed.

[SamsungViv · Accepted solution]

Hello @userPgzejSIFfN

The S9 and S9+ is smart enough to use whichever method is best for the lighting conditions and such. So if you have both facial recognition AND iris scan on the device, it will pick whichever works best at that moment. That means if your eyes are closed, it's probably flipping over to facial recognition to open instead.  😉

[userPgzejSIFfN]

Oh Ok I am surprised this is the expected behavior. 

So if that is true, how do I prevent someone from unlocking my phone by pointing it to my face while I am asleep? 

[SamsungViv]

Well... I suppose if someone is near you when you sleep you probably trust them enough to sleep around them. If you think you might be going into a situation that you won't, you can change the unlock to a password/PIN temporarily instead.  ^_^

[userPgzejSIFfN]

I know other brands which implement face unlock where it does not unlock the phone when the eyes are closed. I am very surprised Samsung implemented it this way. I strongly feel detecting the eyes open is important and this is a basic vulnerability in the implementation of face unlock in the S9... 

The only other way i can prevent this is to disable face unlock, which renders the feature useless for someone who cares about this.

[VerbumVeritum]

@userPgzejSIFfN if you are using intelligent scan, I really don't see how the eyes are connected to your face. Your eyes play no role in facial unlocking. Obviously Iris unlocking won't work with your eyes closed. Seems like a non issue. I dont use either just because of how inherently unsecure both are. Fingerprint and Smart Lock ftw!

[userPgzejSIFfN]

Intelligent scan, Iris scan, face unlock ... I think Samsung overcomplicated this.

As a user, i would expect that face unlock is implemented with practical scenarios in mind. Any user will never unlock his phone with their eyes closed. There are brands out there who have implemented it detecting that the eyes are open. Apart from the unsecure-ness of it, the S9 just made the face unlock even less useful.

Why should anyone enable Intelligent scan if the Iris scan and face unlock do not work together?  If i am asleep, anyone can unlock my phone by pointing to my face.

[VerbumVeritum]

@userPgzejSIFfN if you are sleeping, wouldn't it be some place dark? Facial unlocking won't work in the dark.

[userPgzejSIFfN]

you can't be serious ha ha 🙂 ... i am sure i am not the only person who takes naps during the day. 

weekends, libraries, airports - lot of places people doze off with their phones on them.

[Geno71]

Looks like a lot of people are overcomplicating things here. The solution is super easy, disable intelligent scan and only use Iris scan. A face recognition is not very secure, and they're not hiding this fact. If you want to avoid those security concerns, only use real, secure recognition methods like Iris scan and finger print reader. 

To summarise: Face Unlock is not a security feature, it's a convenience feature. If you need good security, don't use it.