Will Apple's Upgraded Touch ID Be Able To Outsmart Hackers?

By Christine Kern, contributing writer

Apple’s next generation iPhone will include an upgraded Touch ID fingerprint sensor designed to reduce the number of reading errors, according to AppleInsider. Apple is scheduled to release its updated iPhone 6S and perhaps even the iPhone 7 later this year.

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says that the next iPhone will have an improved TouchID module to enable a safer Apple Pay user experience. Kuo added that rumors of a full touch-screen Touch ID experience aren’t going to come to fruition just yet. “Though Apple has filed patents for the integration of Touch ID and touch panel, this isn’t likely to bear fruit near term as complex algorithms and sapphire cover lens are also required,” Kuo explains. “We therefore don’t see any impact on supply chain momentum.”

Apple has filed a new patent application describing how future iPhones and iPads could move Apple's Touch ID fingerprint sensor from the device's home button to the display itself, which would accommodate new ways of authentication, including a full palm-print scan to log in.

Though Apple has not revealed anything about its next-generation phone, reports suggest that the company will include a number of exciting new features to woo buyers. Apple will also reportedly double the RAM from 1 GB in the iPhone 6 to 2 GB in the iPhone 7. TechRadar says doubling the RAM means a much faster and more capable iPhone. John Grubber of Daring Fireball says that the iPhone 7 will have a dual-lens camera that will allow users to take DSLR-quality imagery.

Mark Gurman of 9to5Mac has also reported that Apple would publicly test the iOS 9 this summer. The iOS 8 had a lot of bugs that affected the cellular service and TouchID sensor.

But will the new TouchID technology be enough to outsmart hackers?  Hackers have figured out how to get past biometric fingerprint authentication by using photographs of a subject’s fingers and fingerprint identification software, according to Tech News World.

However, according to 9to5Mac, we shouldn’t be rushing to dump TouchID. Although the hack could be performed with “materials that can be found in almost every household,” the article goes on to say that the process requires a 2400 dpi resolution photograph of the fingerprint., making it highly unlikely that anyone would have the necessary technology to complete the hack.

But if the new Apple Touch ID sensor is more responsive, it could just be enough to prevent those hackers from bypassing its technology to access data.