Method and Apparatus for Using Sensors on a Portable Electronic Device to Verify Transactions

A method, comprising:

• detecting, from a mobile electronic device, a request to engage in an activity electronically;
• receiving sensor data gathered by one or more sensors of the mobile electronic device;
• determining, based on the sensor data received from the mobile electronic device, whether the request to engage in the activity is authorized by a user of the mobile electronic device;
• and
• alerting the user if it has been determined that the request to engage in the activity is unauthorized;
• wherein at least one of the detecting, the receiving, the determining, and the alerting is performed at least in part by one or more electronic processors.

An apparatus comprising a non-transitory, tangible machine-readable storage medium storing a computer program, wherein the computer program contains machine-readable instructions that when executed electronically by one or more computer processors, perform:

• detecting, from a mobile electronic device, a request to engage in an activity electronically;
• receiving sensor data gathered by one or more sensors of the mobile electronic device;
• determining, based on the sensor data received from the mobile electronic device, whether the request to engage in the activity is authorized by a user of the mobile electronic device;
• and
• alerting the user if it has been determined that the request to engage in the activity is unauthorized.