Sewcurity Setting S8+ : Trusted places

[Jimmy_W]

In Smart Lock>Trusted Places, I set my home as a trusted place, and the location screen correctly indicates my coordinates. However, my S8+ often securely locks my phone after my phone times out from my screens. Then, the phone requires a PIN or fingerprint even in my trusted place. In other words, after my phone screen goes dark, I may have to use a fingerprint or PIN even when I'm home. Also, the screen remains locked after I return home from another place. This isn't right, is it? Thanks.

 

[tuscanybay]

Trusted places smart lock never worked reliably, not only for Samsung, but Android in general. Google to see a long list of complaints.

 

[mlblack16]

My Smart Lock trusted places setting seems to work better with WiFi turned off, but there are some days when nothing seems to help.

The best smart lock setting I've found is trusted devices.

 

[StephaneM60]

For me Smart Lock always works with Bluetooth devices. With location, here is the consistent behavior I'm having since Oreo update (Wifi / Cellular / Bluetooth on / High precision location, well I can say I have enabled all features on my phone) :

* Fresh boot : Smart lock works with location based
* During the first day following the phone reboot : smart lock works with location (staying at home)
* The next morning : the phone requires unlock with iris / fingerprint / pin
* After that, if you lock the phone and tries to unlock : either it works without requiring iris / fingerprint / pin, or it doesn't work at all
* If it doesn't work and I change location (that is leaving home), when I return to home => smart lock works based on the location

So my findings are :

* smart lock on location does work until it expires (If I remember correctly I have seen a message stating that unlocking was required because it has timed out : one of theses messages that are on the bottom of the screen in a dark transparent bubble and that disappears quickly), for me expiration is something like many hours without unlocking the phone.

* smart lock works best if you are leaving / entering your secure location. It may be because when you stay in your house / work it cannot confirm your location because it can only deduce your location with network location (cell tower / Wifi) but not with the GPS. Even with the GPS, because of the precision of it, smart lock might requires that multiple readings with different positions be registered.

I do think that all of this is required because it would otherwise be too easy to fool smart lock...

 

[Jimmy_W]

Thanks, Stephane. My Smart Lock sometimes quits after my chosen time period expires. But not always. However, it will always lock and remain locked while I'm away from my trusted location. I don't think that what you described is the way it's supposed to work. To fool Smart Lock it seems that one would need to have possession of my phone in a trusted location or near a trusted device. Possible, but unlikely. In the instructions, Samsung states that the phone should unlock when I enter a trusted place. Samsung doesn't list any exceptions. I will say that this issue only arose somewhat recently, perhaps after the most recent update.

 

[StephaneM60]

To fool Smart Lock it seems that one would need to have possession of my phone in a trusted location or near a trusted device. Possible, but unlikely.

Yes, One would need to have possession of your phone and make the phone thinks it is in a trusted location. And it's maybe why smart lock with trusted places isn't reliable : when I go in / out my trusted place it is always working, it's only when I stay in a trusted place for a long time (overnight) that is stop working... When it stops working if I go out the place and back in it works.

So as I see it : the phone doesn't unlock because it cannot be sure it is currently in the trusted place, even though on Google Maps your position is correct.

I'm pretty sure the position in Google Map is correct because of the Wifi / Bluetooth environment and some Google Maps learning and this is not used for smart lock. In the same way a Wifi router cannot be used by smart lock (maybe it's too easy to fool the bond that exists between the phone and the router... whereas the issue doesn't exists with a Bluetooth device)

 

[tube517]

Smart Lock is always inconsistent for me, on any phone.

 

[jeffmd]

Smartlock always worked for bluetooth connections but never on locations.

 

[captkronos]

Just to add that my experience of Smartlock with location is very similar to Stephane's. It works during the day but upon my waking the following day it has stopped and I need to reboot the S8 to get Smartlock working again. Using Smartlock with a trusted bluetooth device works reliably.