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Researchers Spoof Face ID Using Tape and Glasses

Andrew Orr ·

During the Black Hat 2019 conference, researchers demonstrated a way to spoof Face ID using nothing more than glasses and tape.

To launch the attack, researchers with Tencent tapped into a feature behind biometrics called “liveness” detection, which is part of the biometric authentication process that sifts through “real” versus “fake” features on people. It works by detecting background noise, response distortion or focus blur. One such biometrics tool that utilizes liveness detection is FaceID, which is designed and utilized by Apple for the iPhone and iPad Pro.

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iOS 13 Will Prevent Location Tracking via SSID, BSSID

Andrew Orr ·

During Apple’s WWDC 2019 developer session 713 titled, “Advances in Networking” revealed that iOS 13 will stop location tracking using your device’s SSID/BSSID using the CNCopyCurrentNetworkInfo API. Developers have reported getting an email from Apple that says:

Starting with iOS 13, the CNCopyCurrentNetworkInfo API will no longer return valid Wi-Fi SSID and BSSID information. Instead, the information returned by default will be:

SSID: “Wi-Fi” or “WLAN” (“WLAN” will be returned for the China SKU) BSSID: “00:00:00:00:00:00”

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Apple Locks New iPhone Batteries to Each Model

Andrew Orr ·

With a special chip on the battery, Apple is locking down new iPhone batteries to prevent third-party repairs. Instead, you’ll have to go to an Apple store or an authorized repair center.

iFixit reports that replacing a battery in the iPhone XR, XS, or XS Max generates a “service” message saying the phone is “unable to verify this iPhone has a genuine Apple battery.” The phone will also not display any battery health readings.

The change is due to the chip on the battery itself. In addition to being able to relay information about battery cycles and temperature to the phone, the chips on the newer iPhone models also have an authentication feature for pairing with a specific phone.

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DeepMind Aims to Solve Science's Hardest Problems

Charlotte Henry ·

DeepMind, the Google owned AI firm, is a company on a mission. In its UK cover story this month, Wired went into the company’s new HQ and spoke with CEO Demis Hassabis.

For DeepMind, the emergence of the new headquarters is symbolic of a new chapter for the company as it turns its research heft and compute power to try to understand, among other things, the building blocks of organic life. In so doing, the company hopes to make breakthroughs in medicine and other disciplines that will significantly impact progress in a number of fields. “Our mission should be one of the most fascinating journeys in science,” Hassabis says. “We’re trying to build a cathedral to scientific endeavour.”