September 20, 2023

Fadwa Dalay

12th Grade

Lycée Mohammed 6

Introduction

Picture this: It's a normal day and your phone vibrates, signaling that you've received a new message. You grab your phone, look into your camera, and then just like that your phone is unlocked! Have you ever wondered how exactly Face ID works? Why does it only grant users access to their phones, and not someone else's? And how does Face ID discern between an actual face and a close-up picture of said person's face? 

The Definition of Face ID and How it Works

Face ID is a facial recognition system designed and developed by Apple Inc. for the iPhone and iPad Pro. The system allows biometric authentication for unlocking a device, making payments, and accessing sensitive data. It works by using a facial recognition sensor that consists of two parts: a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser dot projector module that projects more than 30,000 infrared dots onto the user's face, and an infrared camera module that reads the pattern. The pattern is projected from the laser using an Active Diffractive Optical Element which divides the beam into 30,000 dots. The pattern is encrypted and sent to a local "Secure Enclave" in the device's CPU to confirm a match with the registered face. The stored facial data is a mathematical representation of key details of the face, and it is inaccessible to Apple or other parties.

Why Face ID Doesn't Work on Photos

In a nutshell, someone's phone will not be unlocked because they posted selfies of themselves online. Apple Face IDs’ 3D face recognition technology makes it impossible for someone's device to be unlocked by just using a picture because Face ID matches against depth information, which isn't found in print or 2D digital photographs. Face ID might seem like simple software, especially since it is relatively new, but it truly is a fascinating piece of technology that isn’t that easily fooled. 

     Face ID has been an amazing invention utilized by humans for years now to securely make payments with Apple Pay, purchases within the App Store, and authenticate purchases within apps themselves. As AI continues developing and gaining humans' trust, it is evident that this technology will be utilized within more and more fields, making it imperative that its issues are addressed so that users' credit cards, personal information, and devices remain secure.