Do you know the technology used in face unlock on your smartphone, and how accurate it is? I’d like to share my experience with face unlock on an entry-level smartphone. Many smartphones today come with face unlock because most smartphones now ship with multiple unlock systems, such as face unlock and fingerprint recognition, in addition to the PIN, pattern, or password options.
How does facial recognition work?
Facial recognition technology is the tech behind smartphone face unlocks. When you set up facial recognition on your smartphone, the device captures multiple images of your face from different angles. It then analyzes these images to create a unique facial map, which includes features like the distance between your eyes, nose, and mouth. This map is stored securely on your device.
When you unlock your smartphone, the device compares the live image of your face to the stored facial map. If there’s a match, your phone unlocks. There are two types of security levels used by this technology: 2D facial recognition and 3D facial recognition:
- 2D facial recognition: This is the most common type of facial recognition used in entry-level smartphones. It relies on a single image captured by the front-facing camera. While convenient, 2D facial recognition is less secure as it can be easily spoofed with a photo or video of your face.
- 3D facial recognition: This technology uses advanced sensors to create a 3D map of your face, including depth information. It’s more secure than 2D facial recognition as it’s harder to spoof with a photo or video.
This is technology used for face unlock in a smartphone while 3D facial recognition is more secure than the 2d facial recognition
My personal experience on Face unlock
I have a story to share about my experience with face unlock on two of my smartphones, both from the same brand: the Redmi Note 7S and the Redmi 8. These smartphones were launched a few years ago. I used face unlock on both devices, and my first experience was with the Redmi Note 7S. I was shocked when my elder brother was able to unlock my phone using his face. I wondered how this was possible—do our faces really look that similar?
The same issue occurred again when I upgraded to the Redmi 8 a few years later; my brother could still unlock it with his face. Based on these experiences, I realized that the face recognition technology used in entry-level smartphones might not be as accurate, making it easier for someone else to unlock your phone.
However, this issue is less likely with high-end smartphones because they typically use 3D facial recognition, which is more secure.
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Conclusion
2D face unlock is less accurate than the 3D technology used in high-end smartphones. I haven’t had much experience with high-end phones, so I’m curious—has this ever happened to you? Does this issue still occur in today’s entry-level phones? Back when I used the Redmi Note 7S, face unlock was still in its early stages, or perhaps this was a defect in the manufacturing. I’m not entirely sure, but this was my experience.
