Early adopters of the Google Pixel 6a are reporting a security flaw that could allow anyone to gain access to the phone via the fingerprint sensor.
Google’s latest affordable phone isn’t out yet, but it looks like there’s already a major problem ahead of its launch on Thursday.
As Phandroid points out, several early YouTube reviews of the Pixel 6a have highlighted a flaw that could see anyone accessing the phone via the fingerprint sensor. Essentially, the sensor does not seem to recognize or discern between individual impressions.
A YouTuber illustrates it in the simplest way possible. Geekyranjit only registered his right thumb in the Pixel 6a’s settings menu, but was able to unlock the phone with his left thumb.
Other YouTubers have brought in completely different people to illustrate the problem.
It’s a considerable security concern ahead of the launch of what could be an extremely popular mid-range phone. Especially considering that Google has touted the security of the M2 security chip as a major benefit of its custom Tensor SoC.
Hopefully Google will have a software update ready for launch day that can fix this flaw.
Away from that problem, our own review found the Pixel 6a to be a good mid-range option, with excellent performance, a stylish design and a reliably powerful camera. It’s not quite as balanced a package as the OnePlus Nord 2T, but we’ve given it the same 4-star rating as the other mid-ranger at the moment, the Nothing Phone (1).