What's safer? Using a numeric PIN code to unlock your Android smartphone or relying on a finger squiggle? Newly-released research suggests that, at least when someone close by could be looking over ...

Google has paid out $70,000 to a security researcher for privately reporting an “accidental” security bug that allowed anyone to unlock Google Pixel phones without knowing its passcode. The lock ...

While setting up a lock screen PIN on your Android or iPhone, there's always the fear that you might forget it one day. That's especially true if you usually rely on quicker methods without a password ...

You are, we hope, already protecting your phone with a PIN, a fingerprint, or a face (or all three), but sometimes you'll want to add an extra barrier to particular apps—if you're lending your phone ...

Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. is a former senior reviewer who worked at The Verge from 2011 until May 2025. His coverage areas included audio, ...