The security of a pin code vs. thumbprint

time to read 2 min | 297 words

imageI mentioned in my previous post that I managed to lock myself out of the car by inputting the wrong pin code. I had to wait until the system reset before I could enter the right pin code. I got a comment to the post saying that it would be better to use a thumbprint scanner for the task, to avoid this issue.

I couldn’t disagree more.

Let’s leave aside the issue of biometrics, their security and the issue of using that for identity. I don’t want to talk about that subject. I’ll assume that biometrics cannot fail and can 100% identify a person with no mistakes and no false positives and negatives.

What is the problem with a thumbprint vs. a pin code as the locking mechanism on a car?

Well, what about when I need someone else to drive my car? The simplest example may be valet parking, leaving the car at the shop or just loaning it to someone.  I can give them the pin code over the phone, I’m hardly going to mail someone my thumb because. There are many scenarios where I actually want to grant someone the ability to drive my car, and making it harder to do so it a bad idea.

There is also the issue of what happens if my thumb is inoperable? It might be raining and my hands are wet, or I changed a tire and will need half an hour at the sink to get cleaned up again.

You can think up solutions to those issues, sure, but they are cases where the advanced solution makes anything out of the ordinary a whole lot more complex. You don’t want to go there.