In February this year, the LG Mobile Communications Company’s Product Planning Team unveiled Knock Code™, a new feature that lets the user power-on and unlock their LG smartphone in a single, highly secure step. With Knock Code™, the user simply ‘taps’ a personalized pattern anywhere on the display of their handset. This fun, fast act allows them to bypass the conventional security screen and go directly to the home screen. The Knock Code™ project was launched in response to the findings of LG’s consumer research – which showed that smartphone owners unlock and check their devices more than 100 times a day. This information inspired LG to create a quicker method of smartphone access. Since Knock Code™ allows the user to simultaneously wake and unlock their phone, it provides an enhanced level of convenience. It also provides greater security than a conventional password or pattern-based access feature. Knock Code™ divides the smartphone display into four invisible quadrants. The user taps or ‘knocks’ anywhere from two to eight times within the quadrants in a specific, pre-defined sequence. As there are more than 80,000 possible combinations, and no visual feedback that indicates the movement of the user’s finger, Knock Code™ is extremely secure. Already implemented in certain LG smartphones, Knock Code™ will soon be made available via a firmware upgrade for the vast majority of LG’s other handsets in order to benefit as many users as possible.

Knock Code™ is a practical user experience (UX) feature that has been designed in direct response to the needs and habits of smartphone owners. This human-centric innovation succeeds in a number of ways and is representative of LG’s commitment to developing and implementing technologies that make life better. Below are four points that summarize why Knock Code™ is a worthy award candidate. - Security Knock Code™ delivers enhanced security. It offers in excess of 80,000 ‘tap’ combinations to choose from. Entered on a blank screen, Knock Code™ deprives would-be phone thieves of the visual information that could help them to replicate the user’s pattern. LG’s UX feature is a good alternative to fingerprint recognition systems, which can be hacked by an unauthorized person via the use of a copied fingerprint. Knock Code™ presents no risk of biometric data exposure. - Convenience Knock Code™ is more convenient than conventional number and pattern-based systems. Users can go straight to the home screen with just a few quick taps on their smartphone’s display. Knock Code™ can be entered on any part of the screen, making one-handed entry effortless. This flexibility also means the user can access their phone without even having to look at the display. - Reliability Knock Code™ is more reliable than bio-recognition systems, which can be impaired as a result of user and environmental variables. Factors such as humidity and dust, and the sweat and oils produced by the user, can negatively impact these systems, reducing their ability to successfully recognize biometric data. - Wider Availability Due to the cost of implementation, biometric-based recognition technologies such as fingerprint and iris scanners are essentially restricted to premium devices at this point in time. Knock Code™ requires no such systems; making it cost-effective for LG to apply its unique feature to as wide a range of models as possible, from flagship to mass-tier. Ultimately, this allows the company to benefit the maximum number of consumers with its innovative technology. Knock Code™ is a distinctive part of the LG user experience that provides the consumer with a fast, fun and secure way to wake and unlock their smartphone.