Future iPhones may help capture thieves using TouchID

Apple has just been granted a new patent which will help future iPhones catch thieves using TouchID. The system described in the patent is known as “Biometric Capture for Unauthorized User Identification.” The company has gone on to describe scenarios for the use of the patent in its application. This patent application was filed on 13 March, 2013, along with another related application on 29 June, 2012. The patent goes into detail on the workings of the patent where the phone will be capable of capturing and storing the fingerprints, pictures, videos or even audio when an unauthorised user interacts with the phone. Usually, this will be a criminal trying to login multiple times without any success. The device can later present all this data as part of the forensic data to help law enforcement to capture the criminal responsible. Do remember that this is only a concept however. Companies like Apple try to patent every idea they get so as to stay on top of the patent game. Patent trolls are an increasing menace in this digital world and one of the best methods of keeping them at bay is to pre-emptively patent everything, no matter how small. Patenting in such a fashion is not cheap, but we suppose that a company like Apple can afford it. This is a legitimate real world use of the existing sensors from the mobile device which may help phone owners track and bring the person responsible to justice. It’s a nice concept, but it’s doubtful that we’ll see any real world applications any time soon. Of course, the number of privacy issues that such a system can bring up is another matter entirely. What if your kid is playing with your phone?