Why is my 'MacBook Air Touch ID' not recognizing my fingerprint?

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Why is my 'MacBook Air Touch ID' not recognizing my fingerprint?

Mine is a MacBook Air M2 (15", 2023). Initially the touch ID used to work like a charm, super fast. But recently, it has been giving me some serious issues. It can't recognize my finger most of the time. As a result, I have to type in my password which is pretty annoying, specially when I'm trying to be quick.

One thing I should mention is that I have no issue deleting and adding in my fingerprint again. That still doesn't solve the issue. Also, this is not specific to any particular instance, this tends to happen almost everywhere, logging into my computer, unlocking notes, verifying purchases etc.

What to do? Is there something I'm missing out on? Also my software is up to date.

[Re-Titled by Moderator]

MacBook Air 15″, macOS 15.1

Posted on Dec 20, 2024 3:48 AM

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Answer 1

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HWTech

Community+ 2026

Level 9

72,402 points

Dec 20, 2024 5:49 PM in response to pfaasurfin01

pfaasurfin01 wrote:

Sweat gives it an even more hard time detecting the print.

Moist fingers, or if your fingers have been in liquid for a bit that can distort the fingerprint. Perhaps dirt on your finger tip, or hand lotion, etc.

Or it may be a partially malfunctioning TouchID sensor.

I'm actually surprised the Apple article @varjak paw linked doesn't suggest performing a DFU firmware Revive which resets the security enclave chip. The biometric data is stored in the secure enclave chip. While the DFU firmware Revive is not supposed to affect your OS or user data, I would still highly recommended that you have a current backup first just to be safe since I don't know what happens if the Revive does not complete successfully.

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Answer 2

varjak paw

Level 10

182,818 points

Dec 20, 2024 8:34 AM in response to pfaasurfin01

It may well be a faulty sensor. Again, I'd recommend taking it to service for evaluation.

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Answer 3

varjak paw

Level 10

182,818 points

Dec 20, 2024 7:27 AM in response to pfaasurfin01

You may have already gone through these steps, but just to be sure:

If Touch ID isn't working on your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support

If you have and nothing fixes the issue, it may be a hardware problem. Make an appointment at an Apple Store or authorized Apple service center and have your Mac evaluated.

Regards.

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Answer 4

pfaasurfin01 Author

Level 1

5 points

Dec 20, 2024 8:32 AM in response to varjak paw

Thanks for the suggestion, I've done all those. But the thing is, it's not that it ain't working, it just fails to detect my fingerprint sometimes, and rarely it can. It's hard to say that this is a hardware issue. It just seems to me that the touch ID on my MacBook is just very weak.

Sweat gives it an even more hard time detecting the print.

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Why is my 'MacBook Air Touch ID' not recognizing my fingerprint?

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