How to Protect Your PC With Windows Hello Facial Recognition

Hopefully you’ve taken advantage of Microsoft’s free upgrade offer, which allowed consumers to upgrade their Windows 7 or 8 computers to Windows 10 (and if you haven’t, it’s not too late! ). If so, then you should take advantage of one of the most convenient and completely enjoyable features of Windows 10: the ability to sign in by simply glancing at your computer using Windows Hello. It’s easy to set up, but can cost you a few dollars depending on your PC and accessories.

What is Windows Hello?

Microsoft’s general term for the body scan login method is Windows Hello. This avoids entering your password using biometrics (such as fingerprint scans, iris scans, and facial recognition) to give you access to your account. (Note that you will likely need additional accessories for your computer, such as a compatible webcam or fingerprint reader, to use the security feature.)

Windows Hello also works with select Windows 10 apps, allowing you to sign into your Dropbox or OneDrive account without a password. Unfortunately, Windows Hello isn’t as ubiquitous as one might hope, and very few apps support this feature.

Using your face as a password is not new, but in the past the technology was not good enough to serve as a security measure. Photos, videos, masks, or even painted faces have been able to trick the face-scanning technology by relying on a conventional camera. Improved scanning technology used in devices such as Surface Pro or iPhone X now combines a traditional camera with built-in infrared projectors (good for low light recognition) and depth sensors to correctly determine which face is real and which is false.

I use Windows Hello to log into my Surface Pro laptop (leased by Microsoft) and was impressed with the results. As a bearded black man with glasses, I am acutely aware of the, uh, checkered success of facial recognition towards non-whites . I’m happy to say that Windows Hello rarely disappoints. On the rare occasion that it really fails, Windows Hello will try to scan your face again and offer recommendations for adjusting your position. If this happens again, it will ask you to enter your security PIN, which you selected during setup, and will allow you to close the lock screen and get back to work.

How to enable Windows Hello

Open the Settings app and select Login Options (or type “sign in” in the search box on the taskbar). From there, select “Settings” under the “Face Recognition” section. Your webcam will activate and you will see your face. Center the head in the blue square until the scan is complete.

After scanning, you will need to enter a PIN in case Windows Hello fails your login attempts. You can select “Improve OCR” to scan your face again if you experience login problems more often. This is a fairly straightforward process.

You may need a new webcam

There is no doubt that if you want to use the Windows Hello facial recognition feature, you might have to buy new hardware. Windows Hello requires a “RealSense” camera, which Intel calls its facial and gesture recognition technology. Unfortunately, they are not cheap. The only Logitech webcam that supports Windows Hello costs almost $ 200 . Cheaper options are available , but few are available. Consider this a reason to update your aging webcam anyway.

If you’re using a laptop with a webcam that doesn’t support Windows Hello, this might not be the most convenient way to log in for you (I mean, you’re not going to carry that USB webcam around with you, are you?) …

You can use your fingerprint too

While Windows Hello uses an emoji in its branding, facial recognition isn’t the only trick it supports. With a compatible fingerprint reader or Microsoft’s awkward-looking keyboard with built-in fingerprint reader, you can protect your device no matter how much paint is on your face. You will need a Windows Hello compatible fingerprint reader, which is cheaper ($ 25 to $ 50) and much more performance than compatible webcams.

You can set up Windows Hello for fingerprint scanning in the same way you set up for face recognition. You will be prompted to place your finger on the scanner several times and then enter your PIN.

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