Security researchers report that Lenovo's fingerprint-protected USB drive stores data unencrypted on an ordinary SD card inside the casing.

"Lenovo's 'encrypted' fingerprint USB is just an unencrypted SD card in a case" — Hacker News (best) · AI & Technology

2 Nov 2026

What it means

Security researchers found that Lenovo's ThinkPlus FU100 fingerprint-protected USB drive, marketed as encrypted, actually stores data on an ordinary with no encryption. The fingerprint reader only controls whether the USB connection is allowed to work, so the SD card can be removed and read directly, defeating the encryption claim. A follow-up described as AI-assisted also reportedly found a and in other secure USB products.

Accuracy & sourcesGrounded

The claim originates from researcher Xusheng Li's teardown of the FU100, covered by Tom's Hardware and several tech outlets; the item itself is aggregated secondary reporting with no primary source cited, but the accounts are consistent. The broader backdoor/hardcoded-keys findings come from the same follow-up and have less independent corroboration.

Security researchers report that Lenovo's fingerprint-protected USB drive stores data unencrypted on an ordinary SD card inside the casing.

What it means

Accuracy & sourcesGrounded

How new