This letter should also be unique for Apple CEO Tim Cook: By letter mail Patrick J. Foye, head of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), asked him to offer iPhone users an alternative to unlocking their smartphones with Apple’s face recognition Face ID.
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According to counts, around 90 percent of passengers would adhere to the rule of wearing mouth and nose protection on the MTA’s trains, buses and local trains, writes Foye – and that apparently also contributes to the fact that iPhones can be used for contactless ticket payment does not have to unblock with the MTA via Face ID via Apple Pay. But Foye’s letter also states that “it has been found that customers take off their masks on the platforms as well as on trains and buses in order to activate their iPhones for other purposes.”
That is not surprising. Anyone who has ever been on the New York subway knows the picture: If you don’t sleep on the train or read a book, you stare at your cell phone. Only those who are out and about with a partner raise their eyes to look them in the face. Otherwise, the unwritten rule applies: be as busy as possible, not look at anyone if possible. But in case of doubt, this only works if you unlock the phone.
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The solution came via an update
The problem with removing masks becomes more urgent the more people start to use local public transport again, writes Foyer. He is also aware that Apple is working on a solution and that security is a top priority. After all, the company introduced a function as early as mid-May, the mask wearer makes it easier to unlock your iPhones. Instead of having to wait several seconds while the system tries to recognize the veiled face, since then you can immediately swipe up from the bottom of the screen to unlock the device with a passcode instead.
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The corresponding update to iOS 13.5 has been available since mid-May, the beta version could be installed at the beginning of May. So if you miss this function to this day, you should consider that there are many reasons why it is worthwhile to install operating system updates regularly and preferably soon after they are released. Not because they bring new functions with them, but above all because they always plug some security holes that criminals can otherwise use against you. So if on your iPhone at the SettingsApp is emblazoned with a red 1, you better check whether there is under General / software update the next important update is not already available.
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The MTA boss offers Apple help
But that is not enough for the MTA boss. After all, Apple is a “leading global technology company” and has “a range of technologies,” he enthuses. The company should now accelerate their development. Upgrades that would allow phones to be unlocked “while users cover their noses and mouths with masks would be useful in all public spaces, not just public transit.”
The MTA boss does not explain how he technically imagines this, but he offers Apple a collaboration elsewhere. The user must be made clearer about the new feature in the iPhone operating system, which makes it possible to bypass Face ID quickly and use the passcode instead, according to Foye. The MTA would be ready to help. “Regardless of whether via push messages, digitally or with notice boards in the subway stations, buses and trains.”
So far, it has not been possible to attribute the spread of corona viruses to public transport, Foye also emphasizes: He wants to ensure that it stays that way by further increasing the acceptance of masking among his customers.
This is a good thought, because most experts agree on this point: wearing face masks and nasal masks is one of the best and easiest ways to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
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