Siri has allowed us to use our voices to interact withour iPhonessince all the way back in 2011. Unfortunately, it’s not really improved that much since then; in a world wheregenerative AIcan hold incredibly complex conversations, Siri feels a little dated. There are some useful things it can do, but there’s one thing Siri has never been able to do, and that’s unlock your iPhone.
It’s not really that much of a surprise. If you could unlock your iPhone just byasking Siri, then so could anyone else who got hold of your phone. Still, wouldn’t it be nice to have a secret passphrase you could use to get your iPhone to magically unlock? Well, it turns out that you can. Using the power of Voice Control, it’s possible (but definitely not recommended) to unlock your iPhone with your voice. Here’s how.
How to unlock your iPhone with a secret phrase
There are a few ways tounlock your iPhonewith your voice, but this one is by far the coolest. You can create your own secret phrase that will magically unlock your iPhone, whether you want to go traditional with something like ‘Open Sesame!’ or geek out with something like ‘Computer, initiate auto destruct sequence, authorisation Picard, 4, 5, alpha, tango.’ Before you start, you’ll need a way to remember wherethe passcode numbersare positioned on your iPhone. You can lightly draw over them before you unlock your iPhone with a non-permanent marker, use small stickers as an indication, or I found that lining up a few pens around my phone that pointed to the rows and columns was enough.
How to unlock your iPhone by entering your passcode with your voice
You can also use Voice Control to unlock your iPhone by telling your iPhone which buttons to tap on the passcode screen just by using your voice. This isn’t a great idea with other people around, as they’ll hear your entire passcode.
How to unlock your iPhone by activating Face ID with your voice
The above methods are a bit of a gimmick and not really a practical or secure way to unlock your iPhone. However, there is a secure way to unlock your iPhone without touching it all by using Siri to wake your phone, and then Voice Control toactivate Face ID. As long as you’re looking directly at your iPhone, it will then unlock.
Should I unlock my iPhone with my voice?
Face ID and passcodes exist on your iPhone for a good reason. Without them, anyone can pick up your phone, unlock it, and use it. Using some of the methods above means that anyone who overhears you using your secret phrase can use it to unlock your iPhone. They may then be able to see personal photos that aren’t intended for public consumption, read your personal messages or emails, or even use your banking apps, since the same passphrase that unlocks your iPhone may also be able to unlock apps that are locked with Face ID or a passcode. Our advice is to always stick tousing Face IDor your passcode to unlock your iPhone.
In addition, Voice Control requires your iPhone to always be listening out for the special passphrase. It’s therefore likely that using this feature willdrain your batteryfaster. However, you may minimise this problem by only turning on Voice Control when you need it. That’s because turning on Voice Control is something that Siri actually can do, so you can turn it off and on with your voice at will.
Long story short, this a fun trick to try, but we wouldn’t recommend it for long-term use as it’s definitely not secure.
