Can hackers steal fingerprints from photos on social media?

Social media posts in recent weeks have sparked concerns that hackers, with the help of artificial intelligence, could extract fingerprints from photos of people showing the peace sign or holding their hands close to the camera.

Experts confirm that this is technically possible, but emphasize that the risk to the average person is very low.

The debate spread after a television program in China, in which an expert demonstrated how fingerprint details could be extracted from high-resolution photographs taken up close.

If someone were to reconstruct the fingerprint, they could theoretically try to use it to access devices or systems that use biometric authentication.

New York University cybersecurity professor Justin Cappos believes such a scenario is unlikely.

"You're more likely to get hit by a car tomorrow than to have your fingerprints stolen this way in your lifetime," he said.

Ursula von der Leyen's footsteps

Experts recall that there are individual examples. In 2014, a hacker claimed to have managed to reconstruct the fingerprint of then-German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen using photos taken at a public event. In the same year, researchers from cryptocurrency company Kraken managed to create a copy of the fingerprint using photos, Photoshop, a printer and glue.

However, even if someone were to take your fingerprints, the abuse would typically require physical access to a fingerprint unlocking device or scanner, such as a laptop or security system, CBS News reports.

Professor Vyas Sekar from Carnegie Mellon University points out that such an attack would require a lot of effort and would most likely target persons of special interest, that is, those with access to sensitive data or high-security facilities.

Care is necessary, but...

For most users, a much bigger threat are phishing scams, fake emails, and malicious links that criminals use to steal passwords and personal information.

"We don't see cybercriminals using this method en masse. Maybe the situation will change in ten years, but today it's not something that ordinary users need to worry about," Kapos concluded.

While experts recommend caution when sharing high-resolution photos online, they say there's no need to stop posting selfies or hiding your hands in photos for fear of fingerprint theft.