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Your home is no longer safe

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Felix

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This is scary. If you take a key and slightly hit it into the lock with a hammer, you can open the door.

Here's the link.

I guess this means that we will all be upgrading our lock technology in the very near future. With my luck, doors will now probably require passwords - and it will be just that many more of the umpteen dozen that I have to keep up with.

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With my luck, doors will now probably require passwords - and it will be just that many more of the umpteen dozen that I have to keep up with.

Yes, and the passwords will have to be at least 8 characters long, and they'll have to contain numbers and special characters, and you'll have to change them every month, and you won't be allowed to reuse your last 20 passwords--just to make sure you can't remember them! :D

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Yes, and the passwords will have to be at least 8 characters long, and they'll have to contain numbers and special characters, and you'll have to change them every month, and you won't be allowed to reuse your last 20 passwords--just to make sure you can't remember them! :D
Don't worry, they'll also have the easy-to-remember password "adminpass" that lets you reset your password. Or else a little needle-button that you push to reset.
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Don't worry, they'll also have the easy-to-remember password "adminpass" that lets you reset your password. Or else a little needle-button that you push to reset.

And in case all else should fail, they'll have a toll-free phone number you can call to ask them to reset your password.

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And in case all else should fail, they'll have a toll-free phone number you can call to ask them to reset your password.
"Welcome to Secure Lock's 24 hour service line. For English, press star, 1."

[*1]

"For Spanish, press star, 2."

... [*1] ...?

"For Swahili, press star, 3."

[*1]!

"You entered: English. If that is correct, say 'yes'."

"Yes."

"That was an invalid entry. To speak to a customer service rep, say 'help'."

... "Help!"

"Para la prensa número dos del español."

[*1]![*1]![*1]!

"That was an invalid entry ..."

... half an hour, and three-quarters of the cell phone battery drained ...

"To reset your password, press star, 8."

[*8]

"To return to the previous menu, press 0."

[*8]![*8]![*8]!

"That was an invalid entry. Thank you for calling. Goodbye!"

No thanks. I'd sooner throw a rock through a window.

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"Welcome to Secure Lock's 24 hour service line. For English, press star, 1."

[*1]

"For Spanish, press star, 2."

... [*1] ...?

"For Swahili, press star, 3."

[*1]!

"You entered: English. If that is correct, say 'yes'."

More likely... "Umepiga Kiswahili: ukikubali, sema ndio; ila, jaribu tena".
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*snort* A decent thief doesn't need a sophisticated lockpick to get in your house. Most people have that window that just won't close properly or they just forget to lock the door in the first place. The best protection is still a good insurance policy and justice system.

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Either that or some sort of keycard/electronic signal thing (like some cars have). Not sure how safe or easy to fabricate those things are, but it would be easier than remembering that many passwords :)

I recently blogged a very interesting Wired article on just that topic. Thieves have found multiple ways of stealing cars protected with RFID chips -- and the victims are often screwed by their insurance companies, since those cars are supposed to be impossible to hotwire.

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My workplace just implemented THIS system. It seems to me to be one of the most innovative approach to locking something up to date.

The power is in the key and is used to activate a passive electronic lock cylinder that is compatible with the most common lock cylinders today.

You can use a PIN to activate the key for the day at a keypad for added security or it can be a continuous use key. I think I'll use this system for my home someday. Especially with this method coming into view.

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*snort* A decent thief doesn't need a sophisticated lockpick to get in your house. Most people have that window that just won't close properly or they just forget to lock the door in the first place. The best protection is still a good insurance policy and justice system.

To heck with the locks, most houses are built so poorly that I need only put my fist through the wall next to the door to gain entry. A few kicks will break the flimsy 2x4 studs and in just seconds, I'm inside. Of course one could just kick the door down, too. :)

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To heck with the locks, most houses are built so poorly that I need only put my fist through the wall next to the door to gain entry. A few kicks will break the flimsy 2x4 studs and in just seconds, I'm inside. Of course one could just kick the door down, too. :D

That is very true. But, unless one is out in the middle of nowhere, knocking a hole in the wall or breaking down a door is likely to attract attention. And even if it does not attract attention while one is doing it, as soon as somebody passes by, it most certainly will.

What is so disturbing about this new technique is it can be done quickly without attracting a lot of attention. If one obscures the view of what is happening by standing directly in front of the door knob, passers by will just think the intruder is merely fumbling with his keys or playing around with a difficult lock.

Of course, there have always been people who can pick locks - but that takes a certain amount of time, patience and know how.

Now that this has been on television and on youtube - well, it is only a matter of time before we all start receiving warnings about this in email chain letters. Therefore, knowledge of how to do this and the fact that it can be done will be commonplace.

My house was built in 1926 and the doors, including all of the interior ones, still have the old skeleton key locks. Unfortunately, I don't have any of the keys and I am not even sure if a modern locksmith would be able to create new ones for me or not. My guess is the reason such locks went away is they were easy to pick and somebody came along with something which was a bit more secure. That is probably what will happen now in light of the new technique - which I am sure will be heavily advertised and be a boon for the lock companies once the new technology appears. But, in the meanwhile, I can't help but wonder if my house would be more secure if I could somehow located the old skeleton key for the front and back doors and, every time I lock the house, use the vintage locks in addition to the modern ones. Chances are the sort of person who would use the modern bump technique would have no idea how to pick a vintage lock and the technique sure as heck would not work on them!

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To heck with the locks, most houses are built so poorly that I need only put my fist through the wall next to the door to gain entry.
Anecdote time. Some years ago, I was staying with a friend who lived in an apartment building. It was solid construction: 16 inch thick concrete block, with good steel reinforcing. The neighbors two floors below (9th floor) had an outside door that was 2 inches thick, solid very dense wood, and was protected by a steel security gate with a top-notch lock. One afternoon, thieves came by with a cutting torch and were inside the apartment in no time, and cleaned them out. Thereafter, we always had someone in the apartment.

I'm not being a prophet of doom, I'm just pointing out that context matters. The context here was Maputo, Mozambique about 2 years after the civil war ended. In comparison, when we lived in Moscow, Idaho we only locked the door if we were doing to be gone for the weekend.

I'm actually kinda curious about the significance of this bumpkey thing in the context of that report -- hey, Maarten, how much of a theft problem do you guys really have?

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Hmm, as far as I know it's not that widespread, but I haven't really looked at the numbers in detail, nor do I know what the crime rates for this are in other places so it's hard to compare. I do know that almost everyone locks their doors at night over here; but then, I live in an urbanised region where there is relatively more crime (compared to rural areas).

I'll see if I can find some info on this when I get back home.

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I'm no theif, but I've broken into three houses that I've lived in after finding that I've been locked out.

Basically all you have to do is take off the screen and open the window (sometimes you don't even need anything to pry it with). If the screen is on the inside, the flimsy metal tabs that hold the screen don't help, they bend under slight pressure.

If a theif wants to get in, he will, unless you go to exhausting lengths to stop them.

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