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 Flashing the peace sign in a selfie could be setting you up for disaster. 
 
 The "zoom-and-enhance" technique that earned derision in the TV crime procedurals of recent years might not seem so ridiculous when current phone cameras are capable of capturing a fingerprint accurately enough for someone to steal it. 
 
 Isao Echizen, a professor at the Digital Content and Media Sciences Research Division of the National Institute of Informatics, told Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun that he had successfully obtained fingerprints from photos of exposed fingers taken from up to three metres away. 
 
 He warned against the popular peace sign pose specifically, since it's a trend that runs rampant in selfies in Japan. It easily allowed any would-be identity thieves to pair fingerprints with a face. 
 
 His team at the National Institute of Informatics has developed a fingerprint anti-theft prevention technology. The titanium-oxide based substance can obscure and even produce false images of any fingerprints that find their way into frame. 
 
 It may be a little early to sound the sirens on this one, but with biometric security becoming more and more commonplace on phones and computers, Echizen warned that while a password could be easily changed, a fingerprint or a retina? Not so much. ||||| Japanese scientists are warning consumers to stop flashing the peace sign in selfies because it is possible for identity thieves to detect and capture fingerprints from the image, which can be used to trick biometric sensors increasingly used to secure phones, PCs, financial services and apartment building door-locking systems. 
 
 Researchers from Japan's National Institute of Informatics (NII) are warning that fingerprints can be read even if the photograph is taken 3m away from the subject, as long as the index finger and middle finger are clearly visible. 
 
 This is a problem because many of these photographs end up on the internet or on popular apps like Instagram. 
 
 All an identity thief has to do is find a photograph of you on the internet, analyse your fingerprints visible in the peace sign, and then save your fingerprints with your face. 
 
 With your likeness on record and a scan of your prints, they can then attempt to commit identity theft. 
 
 In the past, this would only be possible if a cybercriminal had a close-up photograph of your fingers, but with the advent of impressive front and rear-facing cameras on smartphone, the scientists were able to extract the information easily from selfies. 
 
 The only saving grace is that this technique is not yet possible with the eyes, so you can't scan someone's retina from a casual photograph. 
 
 "Even if you just casually show the peace sign to the camera, your fingerprint can be stolen," Isao Echizu, professor of NII's digital content and media sciences research division told Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun. 
 
 "Biometric information such as fingerprints cannot be changed over the course of a person's lifetime. I want to raise awareness so people know how to protect themselves." 
 
 A tranparent film sticker that stops fingerprint theft 
 
 Echizu and his team have developed a new system that can prevent fingerprint identity theft – a transparent film that has white titanium oxide printed on it in a specific pattern. The idea is to put the film on your finger tips to not just obfuscate your fingerprint, but also to create a fake one to confuse cybercriminals. 
 
 It might seem like a rather tedious thing to do, but the researchers argue that all you have to do is attach the transparent film to your index finger before you go out, and then, if you need to authenticate your identity to access your smartphone, a financial service or a door, you can still do so by using an authentication device that comes with the film. 
 
 Biometric authentication is quickly becoming a way of life as fingerprint scanners are now being shipped to consumers on smartphones and PCs, but the technology is not foolproof. 
 
 In 2015, FireEye security researchers discovered that it was possible to create malware that could hack into the Samsung Galaxy S5's fingerprint scanner to capture images of the user's fingerprints without alerting the phone that it was being hijacked. 
 
 And before that, in 2013 members of the German white hat hacking group Chaos Computer Club succeeded in hacking the iPhone 5S' Touch ID fingerprint scanner by transposing the owner's fingerprint onto a thin strip of latex. 
 
 The same group also succeeded in creating an accurate thumbprint of German defence minister Ursula von der Leyen from photos of her taken at a press conference, and then using a synthetic finger bearing her fingerprint to unlock her smartphone in 2014. ||||| Flashing the "peace" sign in photos could lead to fingerprint data being stolen, Japanese researchers said (AFP Photo/Mustafa Ozer) 
 
 Tokyo (AFP) - Could flashing the "peace" sign in photos lead to fingerprint data being stolen? 
 
 Research by a team at Japan's National Institute of Informatics (NII) says so, raising alarm bells over the popular two-fingered pose. 
 
 Fingerprint recognition technology is becoming widely available to verify identities, such as when logging on to smartphones, tablets and laptop computers. 
 
 Bu the proliferation of mobile devices with high-quality cameras and social media sites where photographs can be easily posted is raising the risk of personal information being leaked, reports said. 
 
 The NII researchers were able to copy fingerprints based on photos taken by a digital camera three metres (nine feet) away from the subject. 
 
 "Just by casually making a peace sign in front of a camera, fingerprints can become widely available," NII researcher Isao Echizen told the Sankei Shimbun newspaper for an article published Monday. 
 
 "Fingerprint data can be recreated if fingerprints are in focus with strong lighting in a picture," Echizen also told Yomiuri TV. 
 
 He added that advanced technology was not necessary and anyone could easily copy fingerprints. 
 
 But NII says it has developed a transparent film containing titanium oxide that can be attached to fingers to hide their prints, the reports said. 
 
 The film prevents identity theft but does not interfere with fingerprints being effective in identity verification, the Sankei Shimbun reported. 
 
 But the technology would not be ready for another two years, the paper said.
– Thanks to improvements in technology, the following popular hand gestures are no longer advised in photos: waving, giving the thumbs up, and flashing the peace sign. Raising the double bird or a fist remain excellent options. Researchers at the National Institute of Informatics in Japan say that smartphone cameras are now so good it's possible to steal someone's fingerprints from a photo taken up to 10 feet away, AFP reports. "Just by casually making a peace sign in front of a camera, fingerprints can become widely available," researcher Isao Echizen tells a Japanese newspaper. According to CNET, Echizen specifically warns about the peace sign because of its ubiquity in Japan and because it makes it easy to match fingers with faces. Echizen says anyone can now steal fingerprints from a photo posted to social media—no high-tech setup necessary—as long as the fingers are well-lit and in focus. He warns that the stealing of fingerprints is potentially more dangerous than having a password hacked because passwords, unlike fingerprints, can be changed, International Business Times reports. The BBC notes fingerprints are increasingly being used for access to everything from phones to bank accounts, not to mention secure buildings. Not coincidentally, the National Institute of Informatics has developed a clear coating that can be attached to fingers to obscure prints. (Napping parents are also in danger of having their fingerprints stolen ... by their kids.)