Touch ID being Erratic

Hi;

I have the same problem. see my thread at https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5709313?answerId=24263459022#24263459022.

With help from Apple Genius I earased all my fingerprints, re-recorded two and it worked maybe two or three days.

Now I am basically using numberic pad to open iPhone. TouchID seems to be useless.

Does anyone have idea how to fix it? Is it dependendt on the actaul iPhone hardware? If I get replacement iPhone will itr help?

Rich Basecki wrote:

[snip]

Does anyone have idea how to fix it? Is it dependendt on the actaul iPhone hardware? If I get replacement iPhone will itr help?

Hi Rich,

New phone will not help, more than likely.

Seethis thread, and only enroll one finger or thumb, and use only one of the 5 available slots. Also follow the link to the YouTube video I posted. It's on the first page. It should help.

-Joe

linda.petaluma wrote:

I was able to scan a second scan of the same finger so I know "Add a Fingerprint" works. Touch ID works for the moment. I'm not aware of a software bug like Twitter. How can I verify whether a bug is the issue?

See this thread. Skip down to "bugs" on first post. There is also a thread about the problem here.

ally0000 wrote:

[snip]

Now when I try to register the thumb it starts OK, scans and vibrates maybe 6 or 7 times then a message pops up saying 'Try using a different finger, this fingerprint cannot be read'. I work in an office so don't have rough hands or prints and my hands are clean, certainly in a very similar state of cleanliness and dryness when I registered the print yesterday :-).

[snip]

Odd. So assuming no prints are enrolled now if I understand your post, I'd try the following in order. I'm also assuming you found my post with the YouTube link, as well as have IOS 7.0.4 installed. Also make sure TID sensor is clean.

Close open apps and stale Safari pages.

Turn passcode off, restart phone.

Turn passcode back on and if it states fingerprint data was found, opt to delete and not save them.

Turn passcode on and try to register a finger. If not working, and if no finger will register, I'd do the following:

Backup phone if you don't have a recent backup.

Restore IOS and test. If TID works, restore data from backup and test TID again.

If TID still fails, it's road trip time.

Arthur_P_Johnson wrote:

[snip]

The only thing in this thread that I've found helpful is Jo Fo's suggestion to register opposing fingers on the same place. That has allowed my TID settings to survive for as long as 24 hours, but no longer.

[snip]

Arthur: Not sure what you mean, but I think you mean where both left and right thumbs are used as if it were one finger. If so, note that that was someone else who suggested it not long ago here. I tried it but found it too failed (for me) fairly quickly.

The only thing that works for me is only enrolling one thumb, and only when following the method I outlined in this thread and in the YouTube video, a link for which is in that thread. It's been working for my wife since early Oct without fail as well.

Apple alludes to this in their support documentation:

"Moisture, lotions, sweat, oils, cuts, or dry skin may affect fingerprint recognition. Certain activities can also temporarily affect fingerprint recognition, including exercising, showering, swimming, cooking, or other conditions or changes that affect your fingerprint."

I would also add, though it may be controversial, that the amount of static electricity one experiences may also effect the sensitive TID sensor. I believe that dry skin, chemistry, climate, clothing, and surroundings can create a "perfect storm" for some people with TID. I have speculated much about this on this forum in the past but I have had a number of reported successes with my setup process as well.

Conflicting info from several Apple Support people not surprising RE TID problems. I had a second or third level type who, while knowledgable, did not know enrolled fingerprint name could be changed. Also, they have zero detailed info about the inner H/W or S/W workings of TID as it's only known to a select core of developers from what I'm told. Makes sense, actually...

For the recent people on this list over the last few days stating TID doesn't work for them, or that they've given up on it, have any of you tried the several methods we've been talking about in this thread over the last several months which might just work for you while Apple finds a fix?

My experience was the same as yours: TID just did not woek. Then I found a solution, posted here and in this thread, and provided a YouTube video. While this works better than other methods I've tried, there are 3 other folks here use different methods which works for them Mine works as long as only one finger of the five is enrolled, and has been since early October. Might want to check them all out before giving up on TID 🙂

I just sent feedback to Apple, as have others here. Here's mine:

"Concerned about Apple Support stating there are no H/W or S/W problems with Touch ID failing, hence

no fix in the works. I can detail major issues, and have tried to help others in your Community Forum,

but this lack of acknowledgement of problems does not bode well for the China launch. Let me know

if you'd like detailed info on the problems as I see them."

While I'm not expecting much at this point, any and all complaints through their official feedback page helps.

I actually posted the fix back on November 27. it's here: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5400101?answerId=23934001022#23934001022

and for those who don't want to search back, I'll copy and paste it here:

QUOTE ######

Since the iOS 7.1 beta does not address this, I suggest we all ask Apple for an enhancement at http://www.apple.com/feedback/iphone.html . Maybe if everyone here does the same thing, we can get a faster response. Feel free to copy and paste. I just submitted this:

Subject: Touch ID Fails after a short time

Touch ID works great initially, but fails completely for me after a few hours.

It seems to me that it fails because my prints change a little bit, and thinking they’re normal, the software adds them to the existing print. Over time, this actually degrades the existing print, until it no longer works. I suggest that you change the software as follows:

1 change the enrollment procedure to allow as many scans as I want to do

2 allow me to go back and add to an enrollment at any time

3 provide a “disable” switch in the touch id settings to disable the automatic modification of a stored print by the software

I would be willing to test these ideas, if you want.

END QUOTE ##############

By the way, I actually proposed this before that date, but I now believe that Apple has that feedback link as a feel-good tool to deal with the people who can't get their stuff working, and it's not even being read!

And the same advice applies to you. If they can't sokve it themselves, ask them to give us a way to manually input our prints. See my post on page 37 and pasted here:

Since the iOS 7.1 beta does not address this, I suggest we all ask Apple for an enhancement at http://www.apple.com/feedback/iphone.html . Maybe if everyone here does the same thing, we can get a faster response. Feel free to copy and paste. I just submitted this:

Subject: Touch ID Fails after a short time

Touch ID works great initially, but fails completely for me after a few hours.

It seems to me that it fails because my prints change a little bit, and thinking they’re normal, the software adds them to the existing print. Over time, this actually degrades the existing print, until it no longer works. I suggest that you change the software as follows:

1 change the enrollment procedure to allow as many scans as I want to do

2 allow me to go back and add to an enrollment at any time

3 provide a “disable” switch in the touch id settings to disable the automatic modification of a stored print by the software

I would be willing to test these ideas, if you want.

THIS OUGHT TO BE A VERY SIMPLE THING FOR THEM TO DO, AND I BELIEVE ALL OF US WOULD BE ABLE TO CREATE A PRINT THAT WOULD WORK FOR US.

smilleresq wrote:

[snip]

The temporary fixes (going into edit and relearning the scan, for example) don't last for me; doing that might get TID to work for a short time, but eventually the scan will fail.

And, the bottom line is that doing all these things takes more time then simply entering the passcode.

Still hoping for a fix for this, though.

Darn, I lost a convert 😟

Point of correction: Renaming a scan isn't a fix for anything, it only makes it easier to remember what finger is which if you happen to enroll more than one (not a good idea for now, IMHO) or to name it with a date tag to timestamp it. Perhaps you were thinking of refreshing a print entry.

Working on a method to help the "learning impaired" learning algorithm that's showing promise, but needs a few days to proof. Probably doesn't negate the restrictions for using TID though. However, the ultimate fix needs to be made in IOS...

Joe_Fo wrote:

Point of correction: Renaming a scan isn't a fix for anything, it only makes it easier to remember what finger is which if you happen to enroll more than one (not a good idea for now, IMHO) or to name it with a date tag to timestamp it. Perhaps you were thinking of refreshing a print entry.

Working on a method to help the "learning impaired" learning algorithm that's showing promise, but needs a few days to proof. Probably doesn't negate the restrictions for using TID though. However, the ultimate fix needs to be made in IOS...

That's what I meant (going into edit and retraining the scan to recognize more of the print).

While I've had great success with the method that I've developed in enrolling fingerprints, and my wife's has been working for almost 4 months now without failure, I've not been satisfied with the fact that some portions of my thumb stop working over time.

I just updated my post with info that I hope to win my converts back with.

-Joe

jimspivey wrote:

I will keep it short and simple, I just heard back from Apple and the engineers say it looks like a software issue after looking at my log.

[snip]

Right, just like they said TID failures was a H/W problem and swapped out phones. A lot of phones.

All: I'm finding out more about TID than I really wanted to know, and will be posting updates to this thread only. Might want to check it every now and then. This thread has gotten too many "me too" replies and has grown far too big for new folks who find it to gain any info from it. People tend not to read through 65 pages as a rule.

One last tidbit for this thread: Experiment with varying the pressure used when enrolling a print. It makes a lot of difference...

-Joe

crosspost from Joe_Fo's more focused thread:

I have something very interesting to share. There's a technical podcast on the TWIT network called "Security Now" where the hosts touched on a way to "overtrain" TouchID. Here's a link to the show — the relevant part starts at ~11:08

http://twit.tv/show/security-now/440

Essentially, you can continue to train TouchID beyond the initial session within the Settings app. Basically, go into Settings>General>Touch ID & Passcode, put in your passcode as prompted, and tap TouchID.

You should be able to see the registered fingerprints at the bottom of the screen.

Now, touch your finger to the sensor, and you will notice the respective listing for that finger briefly highlight through a shadow-flash. It's essentially registering a new sampling. It's like a gym session for TouchID. I plan on giving it a go during edge cases like when it's cold or my fingers are dry in hopes of reducing non-responses.

I really think this is the key. Have a listen to the techie explanation if you are curious, as it does make sense. It's not just registering recognition of the finger — it is signaling new data added to the sampling.

FWIW, I do know that the beta for iOS 7.1 addresses some of the other TouchID glitches (Twitter-related etc.) so help is on the way... This is great technology... Don't give up everyone. Expanded uses beyond its current form are inevitable... and exciting!

Since 7.1 update it's been nearly flawless for me. I can't recall a single failure since.

For those still having problems, I can almost guarantee you that a restore from DFU mode will fix it. Transfer all purchases from the phone to iTunes and back up to iTunes first. Here's how to put the phone in DFU mode when connected to your computer via iTunes: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5409794

Restore the phone and set up "as new." Go through the steps to set up the phone, including enrolling you finger print. Once the phone is set up, go back to iTunes and restore again, but this time use your backup. This will put the phone back the way you had it, and you will not have to enroll the print again. Now TID should work flawlessly. I can't vouch for multiple print enrollments, but for just one finger this works for me 100% after the 7.1 update.