Can cops force you to unlock your phone with your face ID? So, let's talk about biometric phone unlocking versus passcode. It's well-established law in almost every state that your passcode is protected under the Fifth Amendment. You don't have to give your passcode to some police officer who wants to look through your phone. Some courts are treating the biometrics as they would a key, which means it's not protected under the Fifth Amendment like your passcode is. It's beginning to become well-established law that the biometrics are treated the same as a passcode. And they should be. Your face ID and your thumb print should be considered exactly the same as your 1 2 3 4 passcode. But, some lawyers are teaching their clients to disable the biometrics on their phone when they know they're going to have a police encounter. The problem with that is when do you ever know you're going to have a police encounter? If you got a lot to protect in there, disable the biometrics on your phone to be the most protected.