Apple Says Reports of Compromised iPhone X Face ID Accuracy Are Fake News

A report that made the rounds yesterday pointed out that Apple lowered the requirements for the facial recognition components on the iPhone X in order to speed up production, as all of its suppliers had a hard time reaching required manufacturing levels given the complex nature of the parts.

Bloomberg noted that by reducing specifications of Face ID, Apple compromised its accuracy, though no specifics as to what degree the technology has been impacted were provided.

But in a public response issued recently, Apple explains that these are just false claims, as the company hasn’t made such a decision and, what’s more important, Face ID will continue to be at least as secure as announced at the iPhone 8 and X unveiling event on September 12.

“Customer excitement for iPhone X and Face ID has been incredible, and we can't wait for customers to get their hands on it starting Friday, November 3. Face ID is a powerful and secure authentication system that's incredibly easy and intuitive to use. The quality and accuracy of Face ID haven't changed. It continues to be 1 in a million probability of a random person unlocking your iPhone with Face ID,” the firm said.

“Bloomberg's claim that Apple has reduced the accuracy spec for Face ID is completely false and we expect Face ID to be the new gold standard for facial authentication.”

Downgraded accuracy

Face ID is one of the exclusive features coming to the iPhone X and Apple claimed it provides 1:1,000,000 accuracy, up from just 1:50,000 for Touch ID, which used a fingerprint sensor to unlock iPhones.

Bloomberg’s report, however, stated that although Apple itself reduced the accuracy of its facial recognition system, it’s still expected to be far more advanced than Touch ID.

Apple will start the pre-order program for the iPhone X tomorrow, while sales will officially begin on November 3. There’s a chance supply will be constrained at first, but Apple guarantees that Apple Store walk-in customers will all be able to secure an iPhone X, though it admits that everyone needs “to arrive early.”