The future has officially arrived, with the ability to unlock your motor with your phone about to be reality for millions of drivers. It goes one step further than that, too, with your phone also being able to start your car and drive off. It’s good for security, developers stress,
“Digital car key uses advanced technology that’s less vulnerable to unauthorised access than key fobs,” Google explains.
“You can also suspend or delete your digital car key if your phone is lost or stolen.”
The feature needed to access this is called Digital Car Key, which is manufactured by Android owner Google.
The Digital Car Key uses Near-Field Communication (NFC) technology in same way you use NFC for a virtual bank card on your phone.
But instead of holding the virtual card up to a contactless pay point, you hold the Digital Car Key on your phone up to your car door handle. And voila, you should be in.
At that stage, you place your phone on or near the car key reader and press the ‘start’ button.
Is Digital Car Key compatible with my car?
Obviously, older cars aren’t compatible with this, particularly those with a key ignition start.
As it stands, six car manufacturers have Digital Car Key compatibility: BMW, BYD, Genesis, Hyundai, Kia, and MINI Cooper.
However, not every model has compatibility, so you should check if your motor makes the list.
The digital car key uses NFC to open the car (Google / Android)
Does Digital Car Key work on Android and iPhone?
Despite it being made by their fierce industry rivals, the Digital Car Key can be shared with friends and family who have an iPhone if they need to drive your car for whatever reason.
Android says: “You can easily share your digital car key with both Android and iPhone users by simply sending a text.
“Key owners can also stop sharing and set permissions.”
As the person who has set up the digital car key you can amend permissions at any point in time.
The digital car key is kept in your wallet app (Google / Android)
Is Digital Car Key compatible with my phone?
Like with your car, your phone has to pretty new to take advantage of this feature. Your Android phone will need to be one of the following phones or newer:
- Samsung Galaxy S21 and later
- Pixel 6 and later, including Pixel Fold and Pixel 8 Pro
- Select Android devices that run Android 12 and up
If you’re all good to go, follow the steps in your email, vehicle or manufacturer app to install your key. You can then manage the key in your digital wallet app alongside your bank cards.
And good news if your battery dies, with Android saying: “You may still be able to unlock and start your car for a few hours after your phone’s battery has run out.”
And now exactly how much people can expect to pocket has been revealed, with the final figure for each person varying somewhat.
Back in 2020, a massive lawsuit was filed against tech giant Google by dozens of states in the USA. It accused Google of abusing the power it held over Android users’ access to apps on mobile devices.
The tech beast was said to have made companies that develop games use the Google payment system for apps downloaded from the Play Store.
What was Google doing?
Businesses took issue with a percentage of the fee taken by Google, with Google charging 15% to 30% cuts on all transactions, according to Forbes.
Google settled on the case back in September 2023, with the company sharing details of the final agreement in the weeks after it struck a deal.
One measure taken by the business was to lower the cut taken by Google, with it now reduced to between 11% and 26% of the price.
It will also have to show different pricing options in the Play Store so that Android users can, if they so wish, pay for a product directly from the developer rather than through Google Play’s billing system. Essentially, this would bypass the cut given to Google.
Google HQ in California (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)
How much is Google paying out?
A total of $700 million (£550 million) has been tabled by Google as compensation for Android users in the States.
But don’t expect buckets of cash to come your way.
With roughly 127 million Android users covered by the class-action case, we’re talking a very small slice of the pie for each person.
Some $630 million (£495 million) of the cash has been put to one side for individuals with $70 million (£55 million) shared between the US states that brought the case to court. But what does this mean when it comes to cold hard cash in your bank account?
You are eligible if you bought from the Play Store between 16 August, 2016 and 30 September, 2023 (Joan Cros/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
What will the average Android user get?
According to the attorneys general of California, North Carolina, Arizona, Utah and Tennessee, the average pay out will be $4.41.
The most you’ll get will be $17.
And while low, it’s more than the initial payout that was mooted during proceedings, which it sitting at $2 in the settlement documents.
Those eligible are individuals who bought items from the Play Store between 16 August, 2016 and 30 September, 2023.
In a statement last December, Google said: “Android and Google Play have continuously evolved to provide more flexibility and choice in response to feedback from developers and regulators, as well as intense competition from Apple and app stores across the open Android ecosystem.
A Samsung Galaxy phone that used an Android OS (Joan Cros/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
“We demonstrated this in the recent trial and were disappointed that the verdict did not recognise the choice and competition that our platforms enable.
“The details of a settlement reached in September with state attorneys general were filed publicly. This settlement builds on Android’s choice and flexibility, maintains strong security protections, and retains Google’s ability to compete with other OS makers, and invest in the Android ecosystem for users and developers.”
The likes of Samsung and Apple consistently provide updates to their devices with criminals consistently targeting our devices for financial gain.
As well as targeting the operating systems used by both phones – iOS and Android – they will also try and get through our security systems via third party apps like WhatsApp.
Samsung has now revealed its April security patch for its flagship Galaxy smartphones and tablets.
The Samsung Galaxy S24 got the patch earlier, arriving in March for those who own its more expensive model.
Revealing the update, Samsung has detailed exactly what vulnerabilities have been fixed for those using the Android OS phone.
In total, 27 issues have been fixed via Google, with one such issue marked as ‘critical’ by the manufacturer after being flagged as ‘Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures’ (CVE) items. A further 17 issues have also been flagged as Samsung Vulnerabilities and Exposures (SVE) items.
Omar Marques/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Releasing the patch, Samsung says: “Along with Google patches, Samsung Mobile provides 17 Samsung Vulnerabilities and Exposures (SVE) items described below, in order to improve our customer’s confidence on security of Samsung Mobile devices.
“Samsung security index (SSI), found in “Security software version”, SMR Apr-2024 Release 1 includes all patches from Samsung and Google. Some of the SVE items may not be included in this package, in case these items were already included in a previous maintenance release.”
Of the Samsung patches, four have been dubbed high-risk. And while not detailed, the risk with these issues would only be accessible via direct access to your device rather than via remote malware.
CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images
According to reports, the patches stop vulnerabilities to end users who use Samsung Pay.
Unless the update is downloaded and synced with your device, it can leave Samsung users open to attack from hackers and able to gain their personal information.
Little information is available on the ‘critical’ issue highlighted by Samsung and patched by Google, with it dubbed CVE-2023-28578 by the manufacturer.
Fear not if the update isn’t quite ready to be downloaded on your Samsung Galaxy device. It’s being slowly rolled out by Samsung, with newer models of phone at the front of the queue.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images
But it’s bad news if you now own a Samsung Galaxy S20 model, with your security updates now going from monthly to quarterly. So that might also be the reason the update isn’t quite ready yet.
You just have to wait your turn if your model is a little older.
iPhones have been through plenty of change over the years – I mean, remember when the only way to open them was with your passcode?
And then of course we had Touch ID with our fingertips before Face ID even became a thing back in 2017. Obviously, the whole point in the feature is pretty simple – protecting our phones and keeping things private.
Apple introduced the technology using facial recognition to iPhones and iPads so users can protect their information.
The company says: “The technology that enables Face ID is some of the most advanced hardware and software we’ve ever created.”
And the feature ‘automatically adapts to changes in your appearance, such as wearing make-up or growing facial hair’.
However, many iPhone users have been complaining about Face ID after they realised other people can get into their phone using it.
Users have been complaining about the security feature. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
One user took to X to reveal their issue with the Apple feature as they wrote: “My twin sister and I can access each other’s phones.”
OK, so this may seem like an easy dig because obviously, many twins look a lot like each other. And therefore, surely it can be forgiven that Face ID may mix the two different people up because of their similar features.
However, other users responded to the post with similar issues.
“I was confused how my sister kept getting in my phone cause we barely look alike,” one wrote.
As another even said: “Bro my mum and my sister can unlock each other’s phones and we barely look alike.”
And someone else admitted that they ‘literally took it off’ because it led to their sisters going through their phones.
Plenty added similar tales, with one user claiming: “I can get into all my siblings phones and none of us look alike.”
The Apple feature is to protect your information. (Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
And another also said: “Funny thing is I can get into my sister’s phone as well except we’re not twins and she’s 5 years older than me.”
On the support section of the Apple site, it states: “The probability that a random person in the population could look at your iPhone or iPad Pro and unlock it using Face ID is less than 1 in 1,000,000 with a single enrolled appearance, whether or not you’re wearing a mask.
“The statistical probability is higher – and further increased if using Face ID with a mask – for twins and siblings that look like you, and among children under the age of 13 because their distinct facial features may not have fully developed.”
The menacing threat poses a risk to countless devices across the world, with it having the ability to affect pretty much anybody with a smartphone.
And unfortunately, you might have already found yourself victim to such an attack without even knowing. But what is an ‘evil twin’ attack?
According to experts over at NordVPN, an ‘evil twin’ attack is a cyberattack that you can stumble across incredibly easily.
“A hacker creates a fake Wi-Fi access point that mimics a legitimate network and tricks users into connecting,” it says.
“Threat actors create such hotspots to infiltrate a device and gain unauthorised access to sensitive data.”
Areas where you’re vulnerable from these incidents are in public places when you need to connect your device to the internet, such as a cafe, shopping centre, or airport.
Once you connect to the fake network, everything you then do on your device from that moment on is shared with the hacker, passing through their server.
It can impact you regardless of what brand your device is. (Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Android)
How to spot an evil twin network
This can be the hard part, with many of the bogus Wi-Fi networks mimicking real networks in their name. So it really does come down to being smart with what data you’re sharing on a public network.
“The attacker makes the evil twin visible to unsuspecting users. Devices previously connected to the network attempt to connect to the evil twin automatically,” NordVPN says.
“A hacker gains the ability to monitor the victim’s internet traffic and capture personal information that users transmit over the network.”
The best way to spot the fake network is to see if there are two of the same name. And if spotted, approach staff if you can find them so as to distinguish which is the real one. NordVPN also warns about log in screens once you’re connected. If at this point you’re asked for personal details, it is a big sign you’re going to be a victim of a scam if you continue.
“Legitimate networks usually don’t ask for login credentials unless it is a captive portal, for example, in a hotel or airport,” it adds.
Anyone with a smartphone is at risk if they connect to such a network. (Getty Stock Image)
What to do if you’re a victim of an evil twin attack
Disconnect your phone immediately and change your passwords to your accounts. And if you don’t have two-factor authentication (2FA) turned on, get it sorted.
NordVPN then says to scan your device for malware and keep a close eye on your accounts for any dubious activity such as bogus banking payments.
Going forward, it advises: “Avoid unsecured networks that don’t require a password to connect. This can safeguard you from evil twin attacks, eavesdropping, man-in-the-middle attacks, and malware distribution in your device.”
