Post #4610826 · Elektrine

2026-09-03 05:25 UTC

@mattblaze@federate.social besides the legality, this/cameras catching you typing your phone pin let me believe, that pin is not much more safe, even less safe, than using Swipe gestures. Those I could do in a state where I hide my screen even for myself, but pin I have to look and need more time for fewer digits. So I question enforcements about pin usage like from @GrapheneOS@grapheneos.social ? I'm not a special target but I would like a more secure option which biometrics cannot provide, as those enable forced entry easily.

Replies (1)

@tomgag@infosec.exchange 2026-09-03 09:28

@SomeAnoTooter@mastodon.online @mattblaze@federate.social @GrapheneOS@grapheneos.social before AOSP started to become trash, and Google removed full disk encryption and replaced it with file-based encryption in order to have the LOAD-BEARING feature of alarm clock, screensaver and other LIFE-SAVING amenities even when the phone has just rebooted, it was possible to have TWO unlock mechanisms: one, usually more secure, at boot (e.g., a long passphrase after a reboot), and one, more convenient, for screen unlock (PIN or biometrics). This was very useful if your phone didn't have (or you didn't want to rely on) a TPM, because that's the whole security layer nowadays: a TPM makes guessing even a short PIN unpractical (at the cost of rooting the phone). https://gagliardoni.net/#android_dual_cryptfs_dec_2020 Not a good security model nowadays anyway: PIN + Graphene OS is best we can reasonably get against searches on mobile. Until we get all implanted with mind-controlled chips driving an NFC emitter of course. Looking forward to that!

Open ##4610825