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How To Unlock Your Windows PC Using Your Phone's Fingerprint Scanner

Emmanuel Godwin

Emmanuel Godwin

Newbie
• So i first published this post on my blog sometime ago, but i just felt the need to bring it down here, just to let everyone know of some pretty new trick they can perform using their Windows PC and android phone's fingerprint reader..​
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So this is a very quick tutorial on how to remotely unlock your windows laptops or PC, by making use of the fingerprint sensor or reader on your android smart phones.. Pretty cool trick right? well then, let's get right into it.


6 steps to unlock your PC using your android phone's fingerprint scanner​

So first of all, here are the things or tools you'll be needing, and which we will be probably be making use of for this trick.
  1. Your android smart phone with a fingerprint reader, with OS version of at least Android 6.0 Marshmallow and above
  2. Any windows computer
  3. And this fantastic app known as the 'Remote Fingerprint Unlock' installed on both your smart phone and your PC


  • First of all, you must have the app downloaded and installed on both your android smart phone and your windows PC. You can download it for both android and windows Here and Here respectively
  • After you've downloaded and installed them successfully, now go ahead and open the app on both platforms
  • Next step is to lock your windows PC by using the 'Windows + L' keys combination or simply lock it from the start menu. The reason why we're locking the PC is because this is the only place where the windows app on your PC can interact with the mobile app on your smart phone, and moreover something needs to be locked before it could be unlocked right?.. So that's it.
  • Next step is to go to the app in your android phone, go to the scan menu, pull it down to refresh, and you should see your windows PC there, select it and press 'Save'
  • Now, go to the Accounts menu and tap 'Add an account', enter the Windows account that you want to unlock, scan your fingerprint and press 'Add'.
  • Next, its gonna ask you to confirm the session ID, so make sure the number matches the one shown on your computer's screen
  • Next, tap on the account name that you want to be unlocked when scanning your fingerprint.
  • You’re now all set! Go to the Unlock menu and scan your fingerprint. You should now see your computer unlocked.


#Cheers.
Source - Correct Blogger
 
Unforgiven said:
I moved this to the computers forum.
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If that's the best place it should be.. then i don't have any problems with that... But i just felt a lot more people are gonna see it in the off topics forum
 
Emmanuel Godwin said:
If that's the best place it should be.. then i don't have any problems with that... But i just felt a lot more people are gonna see it in the off topics forum
Click to expand...
Sometimes threads could live happily in multiple places. The two best for this one are the Android Lounge or Computers (a sub forum for off topic). Since the primary benefit of the post is for a computer, I figured computers is the way to go.

BTW, I use a Chromebook, and it can be configured so that it doesn't lock if my phone is simply in range or my watch. I haven't used a Windows laptop at home (work wouldn't allow it) in a few years. Does Windows use smart unlock?
 
Unforgiven said:
Sometimes threads could live happily in multiple places. The two best for this one are the Android Lounge or Computers (a sub forum for off topic). Since the primary benefit of the post is for a computer, I figured computers is the way to go.

BTW, I use a Chromebook, and it can be configured so that it doesn't lock if my phone is simply in range or my watch. I haven't used a Windows laptop at home (work wouldn't allow it) in a few years. Does Windows use smart unlock?
Click to expand...

No windows doesn't use smart lock.. except it has its own Bluetooth built with it.. But since most Windows PC we see around doesn’t have an pre-installed or Bluetooth inbuilt, then i don't think it'd be possible
 
I don't usually use Windows myself, I have Macbooks, but this "six steps" sounds a heck of a lot more complicated than just setting a PIN or password to unlock a PC running Windows.

Why bother?
 
So.. If I am doing this on a phone (to unlock the phone) OR via a PC (to unlock the PC) the Biometric data never leaves either of those devices.

How is the passing of the information from one device to the other handled here? is the fingerprint itself sent? is some other token sent from the phone to pc? in which case what is it that actually unlocks the PC itself?

I like the idea, and can see myself maybe using this, but only if its clear how the mechanism works. Obviously i don't want to leak the biometrics of my fingerprints. (changing your fingerprints hurts more than changing a password ;) )
 
Since I have a Samsung phone, I just use Samsung Flow to unlock my PC with my fingerprint. I'm more comfortable with this since Samsung already has my fingerprint in the phone in the first place.
 
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