Tag: patented

EthyloKey: World’s First Touch-Based Alcohol Detector

Ethylowheel is proud to announce the upcoming Kickstarter launch of EthyloKey, a new category of pocket-sized, contact-based alcohol-awareness device designed to help users better understand their alcohol consumption before driving — effortlessly, discreetly, and responsibly.

Launching on Kickstarter on January 8, 2026, EthyloKey combines patented sensor technology, thoughtful product design, and intuitive real-time feedback to support alcohol awareness in everyday life – without mouthpieces, forced blowing, or socially awkward gestures.

Why EthyloKey?

Most people don’t use a breathalyzer when they should – not because they don’t care, but because existing tools are inconvenient, embarrassing, or impractical in real-life situations. Devices designed for enforcement or professional use rarely fit into everyday social moments.

Alcohol awareness should be as simple and natural as checking the time. It should happen before getting behind the wheel – quietly, quickly, and without friction.

EthyloKey was created to remove those barriers and turn prevention into a simple habit – empowering individuals to pause, reflect, and make more informed decisions, while remaining fully responsible for their choices.

Simple, Visual Guidance

With a brief finger touch, users receive color-coded indicative feedback designed to support understanding and self-evaluation. This guidance helps users assess whether they may be above commonly accepted legal limits, depending on context and local regulations.

🟢   Green – Lower alcohol presence detected
 🟠 Orange – Elevated alcohol presence detected

 🔴 Red – High alcohol presence detected
 🔵 Blue – Test could not be completed

EthyloKey is discreet, eco-conscious, and shareable, making it suitable for both personal and everyday social use.

A New Approach to Alcohol Awareness

Traditional breathalyzers have remained largely unchanged for decades: bulky, slow, and poorly adapted to everyday use.

EthyloKey explores a different approach by leveraging insensible perspiration of ethanol – a natural phenomenon where trace amounts of alcohol are released through the skin after consumption. Using a patented sensor system and proprietary algorithms, EthyloKey analyzes ethanol vapors at the skin surface and provides indicative, real-time guidance to help users evaluate their situation before driving.

EthyloKey is designed as a prevention and awareness tool, not as a certified breathalyzer, medical device, or law-enforcement instrument.

How It Works

  • Capture
     Ethanol vapors emitted through the skin are captured within a controlled micro-volume.
  • Detection
     Specialized gas sensors analyze the concentration of ethanol vapor.
  • Interpretation
     Proprietary machine-learning algorithms translate these signals into indicative alcohol-awareness feedback, delivered in seconds.

Laboratory testing against certified breathalyzers has shown consistent correlation patterns, with a short detection delay compared to breath-based methods.

Smart, Connected & Adaptive

EthyloKey connects via Bluetooth to a companion mobile app (iOS & Android), enhancing the experience with:

  • Alcohol awareness history 
  • Predictive alcohol curve visualization 
  • Safety reminders 
  • Multi-user profiles 
  • Adaptation of legal reference thresholds based on the user’s country or location

This connected approach allows EthyloKey to remain flexible in a world where alcohol regulations vary globally.

Design & Specifications

  • Dimensions: ~40 mm diameter × 15 mm height (1.6 in × 0.6 in)
  • Weight: ~20–30 g (0.7–1 oz)
  • Materials: Aluminum housing, stainless steel, high-grade polycarbonate
  • Battery: Rechargeable coin-cell battery with wireless charging
  • Connectivity: Bluetooth for iOS & Android apps
  • Available Colors: Space Grey and Rose Gold 

 

 

Designed for everyday carry, EthyloKey features a miniaturized, pocket-friendly form factor and a sealed, cable-free charging system.

Why It Matters

Alcohol-impaired driving remains one of the most persistent and well-documented road safety issues worldwide. According to European road safety authorities, alcohol is estimated to be involved in roughly one quarter of fatal road accidents across Europe. In the United States, data from national road safety agencies shows that alcohol-impaired driving continues to cause more than 30 deaths every day.

Despite these well-known risks, voluntary use of personal breathalyzers remains extremely limited outside of enforcement or professional settings.

The gap is not awareness — it’s usability.

EthyloKey aims to help close that gap by making alcohol awareness intuitive, accessible, and stigma-free, encouraging people to pause and reflect before getting behind the wheel.

Founder Quote

“Alcohol awareness should be simple, intuitive, and part of everyday life – not a device people avoid,”
 says Jaime Alonso, CEO and co-founder of Ethylowheel.
 “With EthyloKey, we’re introducing a new approach to prevention – designed for real life, to help people make more informed decisions without friction or judgment.”

Kickstarter Launch

EthyloKey will make its global debut on Kickstarter on January 8, 2026.
Pricing will start at $159, with limited early-bird offers available for early supporters who want to be part of this new generation of alcohol-awareness tools.

Finnish innovation stops scam calls – Rest of Europe is following

Scam calls cause up to €850 million in losses worldwide every year, but in Finland, this tool used by criminals has been practically defeated. At the end of November, the action Finland has taken to reduce scam calls will be competing for the European Crime Prevention Award, and Europol is highlighting it as a model case.

Elisa was the world’s first operator to develop a technical method to identify and block caller ID spoofing. As a result, criminals have no longer been able to use Finnish phone numbers in their scams. In 2023, the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency (Traficom) mandated that a scam call blocking solution based on Elisa’s innovation be implemented nationwide in Finland. Since then, a type of scam known as a “technical support scam” coming from abroad has been virtually eliminated in Finland. Elisa alone has blocked nearly 26 million scam calls since 2021. Elisa’s solution was granted a patent in Finland in 2023, and in November 2025, it was also patented in Europe.

“Our employees developed the solution themselves, and we deployed it in our network back in 2021. This solution has allowed us to eliminate the majority of scam calls received by our customers. Criminals’ profits in Finland have dropped from €7 million a year to just a few thousand, meaning Elisa’s actions have already made Finland an unprofitable target for criminals. In 2023, other operators also adopted the solution following Traficom’s decision”, says Karri Jäkkö, Director of Elisa’s Cybersecurity and Service Management Center.

Now this scam call blocking solution has been nominated for the prestigious European Crime Prevention Award. The prize will be awarded on 28 November as part of the EUCPN Best Practice Conference. At the end of September, Elisa and Traficom’s efforts to reduce scam calls also won Rikoksentorjuntakilpailu, a crime prevention competition held in Finland.

From the Finnish model to an international example
Caller ID spoofing remains a tool for criminals elsewhere in Europe: Scam calls are a significant problem, causing an estimated €850 million in losses worldwide annually, according to Europol.

In October, Europol published a report calling for action at EU level: unified technical standards, closer cross-border cooperation, and harmonised regulation to prevent scam calls and hold criminals accountable. The Finnish model is mentioned as a good example. Foreign operators are also actively seeking ways to block scam calls and are interested in the success of the measures adopted in Finland.

“Finland has succeeded in creating a model that effectively protects consumers and prevents criminals from making scam calls from disguised numbers. It’s great to see that this is also attracting international interest. Preventing scams is an arms race between us and the criminals, so we are constantly developing new solutions as well”, says Jäkkö.

In addition to blocking scam calls, Elisa has developed a solution to block calls from unknown foreign numbers. Scam text messages can also be tackled with a solution jointly developed by Traficom and operators.

Elisa’s actions to reduce scams in Finland

  • 2020 – Prevention of “wangiri” scam calls:
    Elisa can identify and block commonly known wangiri numbers (a scam involving missed calls to prompt a costly callback) as well as potential new numbers and prevent the number from being displayed, so the victim cannot call the attacker’s line back.
  • 2021 – Elisa develops solution to block number spoofing:
    Elisa creates a solution that blocks number spoofing, i.e. falsifying Finnish phone numbers and using them in scam calls.
  • 2023 – Nationwide implementation of the number spoofing blocking solution:
    The solution for blocking number spoofing is adopted nationwide by order of Traficom.
  • 2024 – Tackling scam text messages:
    If an organisation has registered their sender name with Traficom, Elisa can block scam messages claiming to be sent by that organisation. For example, the Finnish Tax Administration is one of those who have registered their sender ID, so scam messages claiming to be from the tax authorities will not get delivered.
  • May 2025 – Basic security features for consumer mobile subscriptions:
    Elisa introduces default basic features for consumer mobile subscriptions that protect people using the internet on their mobile phone. These include a secure authentication service (mobile certificate), malicious website blocking and monitoring for data breaches.
  • July 2025 – Ability to block calls from abroad entirely:
    Elisa adds the possibility to completely block incoming calls from abroad using its patented solution.