Security researchers have shown that the malicious use of a small, inexpensive gadget can be enough to compromise a fingerprint reader on just about any Android smartphone.
$15 and a fingerprint reader that’s no longer secure. In short, this is what is highlighted by the conclusions of a study carried out by security researchers whose work has been reviewed by the specialized site Ars Technica.
Android smartphones afflicted…
For this study, the researchers used a small circuit board worth $15. Dubbed “BrutePrint”, it sometimes takes no more than 40 minutes to read and copy fingerprints stored on an Android smartphone thanks to a vulnerability discovered in Google’s operating system. The latter makes it possible to guess an unlimited number of fingerprints as soon as the closest match is found in a database of fingerprints previously loaded on the device, and this, when the smartphone is locked.
This low cost device is however basic. It is based on an STM32F412 microcontroller from STMicroelectronics, a two-way “RS2117” two-way analog switch and a connector connecting the motherboard of the smartphone to the printed circuit of a fingerprint sensor. BrutePrint is also equipped with an 8 GB SD card.
For their demonstration, the researchers used 10 different smartphones, including two iPhones: the iPhone SE and the iPhone 7 (both equipped with Touch ID). Note, however, that the Android mobiles tested were all launched a few years ago, three or four years ago for the most part.
… but iPhones spared
As pointed out Wccftechthe effectiveness of BrutePrint varies from one model to another, but this little gadget managed to find and reproduce the fingerprint allowing the unlocking of each of the Android smartphones tested… with a search delay more or less long, however, since the operation requires between 40 minutes and 14 hours.
The fastest model defeated anyway is the Galaxy S10 Plus, with 0.73 to 2.9 hours of unlock time. The Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra proves to be the toughest, with an unlock time of between 2.79 and 13.89 hours, according to measurements reported by Ars Technica.
The two iPhones tested, on the other hand, remained inviolate, their security device simply could not be circumvented, we read. The reason given by Wccftech is quite obvious: iOS systematically encrypts its security data, which is not the case with Android.
The researchers responsible for the study, however, are far from pessimistic in their conclusions, indicating that the loophole exploited for the experiment could be closed, at least in part, in the future. By working together, manufacturers of smartphones and fingerprint sensors could easily overcome such circumvention methods.
Sources: Ars Technica, Wccftech
13