Lock screen widgets with security PIN enabled?

[Khun_tilt]

Seems like every phone can do it except S4. Beginning to regret not going with the HTC One.

 

[Khun_tilt]

Guys, widgets on the lockscreen BYPASS security, period. If you choose to have a secure lockscreen (either by choice or because your Mail/Work/VPN demands it), widgets are out. Period. This is not something they 'broke', it's something they're fixing.

It's like locking your house but leaving a huge window open by the door.

No, no, no, no and no again. This works perfectly well on my HTC Sensation (and before that my HTC legend) with a PIN code. When a message came through and the phone beeped and/or vibrated a punch on the on/off button opened the screen and the notification was there to see (in summary, e.g mail would have who sender was and title is given, not the whole mail). The phone remained locked. If I wanted to do anything with the phone I slid the ring up for the Sensation (swiped down on the legend) and the "lock screen" with keypad appeared for me to enter the PIN. That is not a difficult concept to grasp, and it is bewildering why Samsung cannot offer this on the S4. As this S4 is my first Samsung (and likely my last) I cannot comment on what S3 etc did. But if HTC can do it with Android, anyone can if they wish to. Period.

And it's more like having a door made of steel bars. It can be looked through to some extent but still cannot be entered.

 

[pdisme]

Handcent solves the problem, no reason to dump the S4 over the issue, it's a great phone other than that and, for me, the fact that the stupid volume switch doesn't adjust notification and ring volume simultaneously. Smart Volume Control 1.1.4 will be out soon and is adding that feature so that will solve my only other complaint about my S4.

 

[anon6136263]

I have shortcuts to apps on my lock screen. Disable the PIN and select Swipe. Then go to select multiple widgets. Then select shorts to ON and select the short cuts to the apps you want on the Lockscreen. I have a camera, maps, and phone on my lock screen. Then renable your PIN lock and you should be good to go. My S4 is a week old on AT&T. I don't of WIDGETS, but SHORTCUTS on my lockscreen, but you can't configure anything with a PIN enabled. Disable it, configure your lockscreen, reenable it.

 

[asdfasdfgasdfadfs]

enabling the shortcuts in Swipe, and then turning on the Lock screen pattern/PIN method, doesn't work on SPRINT S4. It seems that it is indeed Carrier dependent, as it seems that folks on AT&T are able to do this.

 

[pdisme]

Yep, that doesn't work on VZ either.

 

[Scutley]

How hard is it to enter a pin/pattern/password to get to your widgets. I mean it only take me a send to enter my pin, and then there is all of my widgets. I don't get why that is so difficult. If you really want the widgets on your lock screen, then turn the password/pin/pattern off.

 

[Khun_tilt]

How hard is it to enter a pin/pattern/password to get to your widgets. I mean it only take me a send to enter my pin, and then there is all of my widgets. I don't get why that is so difficult. If you really want the widgets on your lock screen, then turn the password/pin/pattern off.

You clearly don't get many emails and/or messages. My phone is pinging all day with work related stuff. My old HTC phones (and from posts on this forum, other brands too) I would just push "on" and the message notification is there to see. Message not important? Ignore. Message important, enter PIN and action it. However, having to enter the PIN each and every time just to open the phone, then enter the mail or message apps to see what the mail/message is about is more than just a little annoying, especially when older Samsungs could do this. However, I have now installed WidgetLocker, following an earlier post. I push the home button and the emails show in one box and texts in another. If more than one I can scroll in each box. But that is all that can be done to them. The phone is still locked and to proceed further, such as replying to them, the PIN is required. THAT is how it should be. THAT is how it worked on my last two HTCs. So not difficult Samsung.

 

[Khun_tilt]

Handcent solves the problem, no reason to dump the S4 over the issue, it's a great phone other than that and, for me, the fact that the stupid volume switch doesn't adjust notification and ring volume simultaneously. Smart Volume Control 1.1.4 will be out soon and is adding that feature so that will solve my only other complaint about my S4.

Maybe not over just this issue but the reasons are mounting. No FM radio any more. No ability to change what is is the dock along the bottom. And more. The list is growing. Yes most of these issues can be solved with apps, but why should there be the need to do so...and overburden the OS...when these features existed on earlier models? This is Samsung following Apple's example and showing callous disregard for users.

 

[pdisme]

Maybe not over just this issue but the reasons are mounting. No FM radio any more. No ability to change what is is the dock along the bottom. And more. The list is growing. Yes most of these issues can be solved with apps, but why should there be the need to do so...and overburden the OS...when these features existed on earlier models? This is Samsung following Apple's example and showing callous disregard for users.

Could some of it be google's doing? and/or specific carriers? It already sounds like the lock behaves differently on AT&T versus Sprint and VZW. I find the fact that the home screen won't go landscape anymore to be very annoying, but apparently that was google's doing (in whatever version runs on the S4) not Samsung's.

 

[Khun_tilt]

Could some of it be google's doing? and/or specific carriers? It already sounds like the lock behaves differently on AT&T versus Sprint and VZW. I find the fact that the home screen won't go landscape anymore to be very annoying, but apparently that was google's doing (in whatever version runs on the S4) not Samsung's.

Some is Google related, to be sure. Google stopped the radio from Ice Cream Sandwich onwards. But HTC added it back. As long as the manufacturer has the correct chip and antenna it can be added back. There are apps to do so but apparently the S4 has no antenna.

Google also stopped ability to run apps off the SD card but again I could do it on my Sensation which ran ICS. The manufacturers alter standard Android to suit themselves anyway, be it TouchWiz or Sense or whatever, so they could go the extra yard. Especially when it existed on an earlier version; which actually means they have made the extra effort - to remove the feature. That's what's most annoying. If it is a feature that was never there we can ask why isn't it there. When it's a feature that was there and worked fine and they remove it we ask why the f@#* is it not there.

 

[Rambler358]

This issue is likely due to syncing with Exchange services. It seems like the only way to resolve the issue is to remove any Exchange accounts you may have setup.

 

[deeddawg]

It seems like the only way to resolve the issue is to remove any Exchange accounts you may have setup.

True, but that's like burning down your house to fix a leaky roof. Accessing corporate email/calendar/etc is a major piece of required functionality for most people. The ability to easily triage new email via the subject/sender/first-words when at lunch or during a meeting is also important to many people.

I mostly like my S4, but this issue is going to put me back to iOS if I don't see a solution in a couple days.

 

[Ashrah Platt]

Please help! I have a lock screen on my fone that was never there and i cant seem to get it switched off. it's not secure at all because it allows you to enter into a folder and then only asks for the pattern once you wana open the actuall message if i can use an example. My fone is now not secure at all. i have selected none security on my phone but even then does still screen appear where you just need to slide downwards to unlock.. no security at all, please assist, im so highly frustrated by this.

 

[HPferoxCraft]

Please help!

Under system settings->my device->lockscreen, what does it say under screen lock?
Did you install any 3rd party locksceen like Golocker?
If it says Swipe or no security under Screen Lock try powering down, pull out and reinsert battery and powering up again, maybe the program got caught in a glitch.

 

[theShiz]

not to be rude, but unfortunately you are 100% wrong. Showing something like Dash clock that shows weather time etc is not a security risk. With the current security setup that the s4 has, you can't even put information on the screen that says "please call this number if found" so if you lose your phone someone can't even call yo since you can't put a common sense message on the screen. Being able to only see the time date and some Life Companion message isn't securing my phone. Unless you download an app that shows the weather in the pull-down shade, you can't even see the weather from the secured locks screen. They should leave it the way Google set it up. Also I don't see how having quick access to a camera that still has a secure lock screen is insecure. I guess I could understand it more if you could give some examples of how having a lock screen that also allows you to have widgets that don't really show really any information that would be crucial to your identity, no more than the one that Samsung forces you to use, that would be great if you could elaborate on the difference in security.

 

[pdisme]

not to be rude, but unfortunately you are 100% wrong. Showing something like Dash clock that shows weather time etc is not a security risk. With the current security setup that the s4 has, you can't even put information on the screen that says "please call this number if found" so if you lose your phone someone can't even call yo since you can't put a common sense message on the screen.

This can be done:

Settings -> My Device -> Lock Screen -> Lock Screen Widgets -> Owner information. I set my 'owner information' to "Reward if found 123-123-124" and used my wife's number.

 

[Zrats]

I agree that widgets should not be able to bypass security but the behavior is a design flaw. The system should be intelligent enough to prompt for security PIN if someone clicks on the widgets not restrict widgets completely. That's a sledge hammer approach by android developers. If a user explicitly places a widget on the lock screen, no security level should restrict that (because user deemed that whatever widget is showing is not a security breach). Security should be enforced when someone tries to get away from the lock screen.

I like the house analogy discussed in this thread. However, I look at it a different way. A house has a locked door but it also has windows, yes? The locked door prevents people from going in... that's your PIN.
Assuming windows are closed/locked but open blinds, then you can LOOK into the house... you still can't go in but since home owner left the blinds open, you have visual 'access'. House is still secure.

My situation:
Have the Galaxy S4. Set up company email, requires security PIN.
Unable to add Lock Screen Notification widget to lock screen. This is better notification that wakes up screen with bigger text as opposed to the tiny notification bar. Helps with new text messages, fb messages, etc.
Any tips? How do I open some blinds for my notifications.

 

[Rambler358]

My solution was to use Enhanced Email, which has the option to bypass exchange PIN setup.

 

[CrzyP]

My solution was to purchase WidgetLocker. I am able to have a Jellybean style lock screen with widgets and without the need of custom ROMs or whatever. You can disable the widgets on the launch screen from opening apps if you want. If you have a PIN or pattern lock, it will prompt you for the code if you try to launch an app from a widget or unlock the device. You can easily launch the camera and not have access to the photo gallery just like a PIN locked iPhone. I went this route because I wanted to use a full screen DashClock and quick access to the camera while keeping my phone secure with a PIN.