A Virginia court ruled this week that smartphone can be forced to unlock their devices with their fingerprints, but not with their passwords, allowing police to search their devices.
The ruling arose from a case in which a man was accused of trying to strangle his girlfriend. A video showing the incident was on the defendant's phone, but his lawyer argued that handing over the passwords would violate the Fifth Amendment's protection against self-incrimination.
But a fingerprint – used by a number of devices, including the latest iPhones, iPads, and Samsung Galaxy – does not fall under this law, and Judge Steven C. Frucci likened it to handing over a DNA sample.
The irony is that fingerprint technology was intended to make devices more secure for consumers and businesses alike, not to make them easier for government agencies to access.
There is a caveat, however. If a device is locked by both a fingerprint and a passcode, the passcode wins, meaning the device is protected.
The decision comes just weeks after Apple and Google announced security measures for iOS and Android devices, which come with default encryption to prevent government agencies from unlocking the devices.
The two mobile phone giants, after government surveillance data was leaked, with the help of Edward Snowden.
