Secretions on your phone reveal your secrets

Mobile phones may reveal as much about their owners as the data inside them, a finding that complicates device privacy issues. In a paper [PDF] published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers found that by sampling chemicals deposited on mobile phones through regular usage, they could learn about …

[Anonymous Coward]

Chemicals and touchscreens

You can interfere with a fingerprint reader and even destroy it by rubbing your fingers on a piece of indium. Gallium would have the same effect, but it is much more poisonous than indium.

Posting anonymously for obvious reasons.

[Anonymous Coward]

And this part of the reason why...

I always wipe the keypad (usually with my hands) after I used an ATM or electronic payment terminal. Because although it seems far fetched you never know how far some people will go to try and get access to your codes.

[David Pollard]

Re: And this part of the reason why...

After reading the list of contaminants I think I might start to wipe it before using it.

[ecofeco]

Who needs all that fancy science?

WAY over thought. Just take anyone's phone and tilt it at just the right angle to the light and you can easily see the most pressed and swiped areas, especially if the zig zag unlock is used.

[jpat14]

Not groundbreaking discovery...

The fact that forensic evidence can be collected from items that you touch has been known for quite some time now.

[Patrick R]

it can be used with other objects such as keys

But you'd have had far less hit with a title like that.

[VinceH]

"In a paper [PDF] published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers found that by sampling chemicals deposited on mobile phones through regular usage, they could learn about the device owner's health and habits."

No shit, Sherlock - depending on whether or not Sherlock washes his hands properly.

[mics39]

Another great medical advance

Great! No more yuckky collecting of stool samples, I can now just hand over my phone for swab by the technician.

[Teiwaz]

Pretty much not news

When you consider attempts to retrieve DNA from ancient bones have been hampered by contamination if not retrieved very very carefully.

Any details retrieved from a phone would also be affected by anyone close to it other than the owner, partners, siblings, offspring, mates down the pub you show that funny video to and who breathed on the phone screen.

[Nimby]

Bah. Whatever.

I'm a --- who takes a low dose of --- because I have negative reactions to ---. I eat pretty darn healthy and I try to exercise regularly. (Including an under-desk bicycle.) Why would I give a flying fairy fart who can mine that from swabbing my phone for vague and pointless medical information? You don't need a secret swab of my fingerly juices. Just pay some intern twenty bucks to stack me for a day and you'll know that much about My Secret Identity. Bah. Whatever. The fact that I still use a Nokia C6 with the Symbian revamp instead of Apple or Google because it a) works better and b) is less likely to be hacked and c) still has great battery life is probably a heck of a lot more interesting than how many vegetables I eat in a day. :\