I’ll read your palm and tell you what your phone password is

Samsung might be developing a bizarre security feature that can read your palm and give you a hint for what your password is in case you don’t remember it.

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Biometric security on mobile devices is not a novel idea: you can find fingerprint scanners even on mid- and lower-range Android devices these days, with manufacturers experimenting with alternative biometric measures like iris-scanning and 3D facial recognition for high-end flagship phones. So we have face; we have irises; and we have fingers. What about palms?

According to the latest patent filed by the South Korean electronics giant, your palm may become quite handy in the future, especially if you’re prone to forgetting your phone’s password. The idea is odd but simple: the phone will take a photo of your palm using either the front-facing camera or the rear-facing one, analyze individual lines, and if it’s a match, give you cryptic but not-completely-convoluted clues as to what your password is.

For instance, if your password is ABHL, the screen will display parts of those letters to jog your memory. Of course, since the technology relies on camera sensors to identify registered palm lines, it cannot be used for unlocking the device itself or secure transactions like Samsung Pay, but as the patent suggests, Samsung envisions it to be an extra security measure in verifying user identity for password recovery.

A two-step authentication system like this one could offer a creative solution to an otherwise complex process for mobile phone password recovery.

While it may not be as revolutionary or secure as Apple’s FaceID, and while it may not be capable of telling you what your future holds based on your palm lines, a two-step authentication system like this one could offer a creative solution to an otherwise complex process for mobile phone password recovery.

Do you think Samsung’s palm authentication is an innovative idea? What kind of biometric security measures do you like to see in a phone? Let us know by leaving a comment below!