Two major security issues with popular smartphones this week. First the Samsung Galaxy S10 and then the Google Pixel 4. For the Galaxy, it's fingerprint reader currently accepts any fingerprint to unlock the device and authorized activities. While the Pixel does not require attention for facial recognition to unlock the device or authorize activities.

Neither is good. Though the response is telling. Samsung is quickly pushing out a patch to resolve their issue. Google has issued a statement say that facial recognition is working as expected and in the future, it may add extra features like attention detection.

Getting users to accept new security controls is an uphill battle, any setback makes it harder for any solution to push out additional security measures. 

But the response is a stark reminder that security features are just like any others. They will be triaged for bugs and prioritized according to criticality and demand. And sometimes, other pressures mean that the security-focused call isn't the one that's made.

References:

• Reuters on the Samsung Galaxy S10 issue, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-samsung-elec-smartphone/samsung-to-patch-galaxy-s10-fingerprint-problem-idUSKBN1WW0Q5
• BBC News has the report on the Google Pixel 4, https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-50085630
• MY AWS re:Invent 2019 series, https://markn.ca/2019/aws-reinvent/