[HN Gopher] Saintcon: Lock Picking Lawyer Keynote
       ___________________________________________________________________
        
       Saintcon: Lock Picking Lawyer Keynote
        
       Author : brudgers
       Score  : 385 points
       Date   : 2021-11-28 04:42 UTC (18 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.youtube.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.youtube.com)
        
       | xaduha wrote:
       | I keep bringing up smartcards in every thread, but I just can't
       | help it. Car keys seems to be moving towards contactless, at
       | least Tesla got a right idea, there's even open-source
       | implementation as an applet for it
       | https://github.com/darconeous/gauss-key-card.
       | 
       | Cryptography is math and you can't beat math, cost and scale will
       | always limit complicated physical keys. And most existing
       | electronic keys/tags/fobs/cards use cheaper not-quite-smartcards
       | that are vulnerable to replay attacks and cloning, LPL even had
       | some videos about them.
        
         | judge2020 wrote:
         | Tesla got it wrong in the sense BT is vulnerable to repeater
         | attacks and such could likely be used to steal your car,
         | assuming you were targeted by someone trying.
         | 
         | Edit for reference:
         | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25187170
        
           | xaduha wrote:
           | Cut Bluetooth then, I'm not talking about Bluetooth. Google
           | Titan also had a Bluetooth version which was also vulnerable
           | I think. And even BLE needs a battery, smartcards (or smart
           | rings) don't.
        
           | tux1968 wrote:
           | I don't know how Tesla implemented their key, but there's
           | nothing in BT that makes it inherently vulnerable to repeater
           | attacks. Garage doors addressed that problem a long time ago
           | by changing the code after every successful opening.
        
             | marcan_42 wrote:
             | That's not a repeater attack; that's a replay attack.
             | 
             | A repeater attack means tunneling the communications over
             | the internet/long distance radio/whatever, where someone's
             | in your car and someone else is following you. That's the
             | repeater bit, they have a pair of devices that act like a
             | long distance radio repeater.
        
               | tux1968 wrote:
               | That's diabolically clever. I'm curious how any
               | technology can overcome that, and why BT is apparently
               | more susceptible?
        
               | xaduha wrote:
               | > I'm curious how any technology can overcome that
               | 
               | Faraday cage/foil wallets for things that don't require
               | any auth or PINs or even a button press.
        
               | tux1968 wrote:
               | Okay, but that would work for a BT device too. I was
               | mostly curious why BT was seen as a bad choice and more
               | vulnerable than another option.
        
               | xaduha wrote:
               | This whole comment tree kinda got derailed into
               | bikeshedding about BT with confusion between replay and
               | repeater attacks to boot. It probably isn't any more
               | susceptible than similar RF alternatives.
               | 
               | Personally I wouldn't want a BT key because I used smart
               | rings, namely a contactless payment ring and an OMNI
               | ring. They aren't without issues, but they are miles
               | ahead of a device like Chameleon Tiny Pro (which I also
               | used) when it comes to usability. There might be smaller
               | BLE devices out there, but it is pretty small. About the
               | same as Google Titan BLE based on the images.
        
               | istjohn wrote:
               | You just need a technology that only works across spaces
               | no larger than a couple feet.
        
               | PeterisP wrote:
               | There really aren't common technologies that *only* work
               | across spaces no larger than a couple feet; the
               | technologies that _normally_ are limited to very close
               | range can actually be used at larger distances with
               | proper (large, directional) antennas and more powerful
               | radio hardware.
        
               | ema wrote:
               | If you can make the response fast enough that the speed
               | of light delay dominates you can measure the latency and
               | have an upper bound on how far away the key can be.
        
           | oxplot wrote:
           | Repeater attacks can be mitigated by putting a time limit for
           | a response from the device used as the key (e.g. phone).
           | That's how a lot of contactless payment terminals ensure the
           | physical credit card is in proximity of the reader and
           | someone isn't relaying the responses across the country.
        
         | chrisseaton wrote:
         | > Car keys seems to be moving towards contactless
         | 
         | Moving towards? I don't think you can buy a car that has a
         | physical key anymore can you (except for the emergency key you
         | can pry out.)
        
           | folmar wrote:
           | There is no shortage of those Dacia Spring Dacia Sandero
           | Stepway Renault Clio Renault Captur Renault Megane VW T-Cross
           | ...
           | 
           | I'm tired to list more.
        
           | BenjiWiebe wrote:
           | And there's the weakness. An emergency key that you can use
           | means there's an emergency keyway that can be picked.
           | 
           | And thank goodness, too. I spoke to a locksmith a while back
           | and he told me about some fancy import sports car with no
           | emergency keyway and there was a child locked in, and of
           | course the key was in the vehicle.
           | 
           | He did get the door open, IIRC there was a button to press to
           | unlock, but not where his long-reach tool could easily get
           | to. He said a cop had to watch from the other side and guide
           | him to the button. He said it took around an hour to open.
        
           | approxim8ion wrote:
           | In US and some EU countries perhaps, but I can assure you
           | that is not the case for most of us out here.
        
         | pavel_lishin wrote:
         | > _Cryptography is math and you can 't beat math_
         | 
         | But you can beat badly written software.
        
       | speedgoose wrote:
       | If youtube suggests way too many lock picking videos after you
       | watched this one, you can go to your YouTube history and remove
       | the video from the list.
        
       | timonoko wrote:
       | Happiness is when you finally discover and experience "counter
       | rotation" all by yourself.
        
         | codezero wrote:
         | And madness is when there are only serrated pins. At least for
         | me :)
        
       | cranium wrote:
       | LPL videos are an example in educational videos. Clear
       | explanations, no fluff, no finger pointing (except for Master
       | Lock and unbacked marketing claims) and real expertise.
        
         | Stevvo wrote:
         | They stand out in all of the fluff on YouTube because it's just
         | about the locks. No vane selfie cams.
        
           | sneak wrote:
           | There are a lot of famous no-face YouTubers. AvE, Maru's
           | human, etc.
        
           | mnw21cam wrote:
           | Similar to Big Clive.
        
             | unixhero wrote:
             | Now we're talking:
             | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfJjicQkYsU
        
       | oxplot wrote:
       | I want LPL to tell me _once_ what to buy, not keep telling me
       | what not to buy 1400 times. It 's educational, I understand, but
       | man, can you put up one video where you tell us what you use on
       | your own front door?
        
         | dotancohen wrote:
         | > I want LPL to tell me once what to buy,
         | 
         | That would entail far more responsibility - and possibly
         | liability - than telling you what not to buy. Remember, this
         | guy is a lawyer.
        
         | half-kh-hacker wrote:
         | There is a video for modified Kwikset that he showed that's
         | what is on his door, AFAICT.
        
           | ImJasonH wrote:
           | https://youtu.be/7JlgKCUqzA0
        
         | kamranjon wrote:
         | This goes into some padlocks he considers to be quality:
         | https://youtu.be/L6iMmCSayBQ
        
         | geertj wrote:
         | Besides the modified Kwikset, he was also unable to pick the
         | Bowley lock.
        
       | bjoli wrote:
       | I have done a little bit of lock picking as a hobby, and LPL is
       | somewhat of a lock-picking Mozart. Locks I struggle with, he
       | picks in less than 30 seconds.
       | 
       | He has inspired me to become better at lock picking, which helped
       | me at least once when I locked myself out of my locker at work.
       | My Assa-Abloy lock which would have taken me 20 minutes before
       | was open in under 2 minutes.
        
         | codezero wrote:
         | I am convinced he's a savant. A combination of maybe naturally
         | higher senses in the fingers and a methodical approach to
         | solving puzzles.
         | 
         | I got pretty good pretty fast at picking, and that convinced me
         | he is otherworldly in his talent and abilities.
         | 
         | On another note, I'm really going to miss Bosnian Bill, he
         | excelled as a teacher and worked hard to remove anything
         | mystical or subjective from approaching lock picking. LPL is
         | great, but still doesn't quite go into deep detail about how to
         | improve at tensioning, dealing with various types of pins, in a
         | way that resonates with "regular" people, where Bill was just a
         | huge help in those areas.
        
           | delusional wrote:
           | The wonderful thing about video is that even as Bosnian Bill
           | retires his lessons will remain available, all 1909 of them.
        
             | codezero wrote:
             | Unless he shuts down his channel, though I suppose folks
             | will have made copies.
        
               | unixhero wrote:
               | We do datahoard, yes.
        
       | aphroz wrote:
       | I've watched way too many lockpicking videos since I discovered
       | LPL. A little click on one, two is binding..
        
         | carreau wrote:
         | Read some of these and tell me if you hear his voice.
         | 
         | https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/comments/irszx0/wp_h...
         | 
         | "Anyways, that's all for me today, if you liked this video
         | please subscribe to see more videos like this, and as always,
         | have a nice day."
        
         | JaakkoP wrote:
         | I too find his explanation on each click soothing.
         | 
         | Except when he got challenged to open a "difficult" bike lock
         | in under 2 minutes by another locksmith he was dead silent the
         | entire time and opened it in like 20 seconds.
        
           | masklinn wrote:
           | The first video using lishis was absolutely stellar as well
           | as it showed much more clearly what was happening under the
           | hood.
        
         | shapefrog wrote:
         | "And back to one"
        
         | unixhero wrote:
         | "Got a click out of him/hem"
        
       | junon wrote:
       | Watched this the other day. Great talk by a legend lockpicker.
        
       | TwinProduction wrote:
       | I love LPL. I knew he liked his craft, but even his intentions
       | are pure -- I had no idea he purposely shortened his videos to
       | icnrease his reach.
        
       | lgsilver wrote:
       | Funny that right after he explained how he keeps his family safe
       | by keeping his face and name off the internet, he spent the rest
       | of the video focusing on the ineffectiveness and "downright
       | stupidity" of security by obscurity.
        
         | [deleted]
        
         | GuB-42 wrote:
         | I think there is a misunderstanding about security by
         | obscurity. What is bad is hiding defects instead of addressing
         | the problem. It does not mean you should reveal everything! I
         | find it well explained in the video.
         | 
         | For example, if you don't tell people what kind of lock you are
         | using to secure your stuff, this is a form of security by
         | obscurity, but it is not a bad thing. Even if your lock is one
         | of the best, if an attacker knows what it is, he will be better
         | prepared. I think no one who cares about security will tell you
         | things that you don't need to know, it is called OPSEC, I
         | believe.
         | 
         | What is bad is when you realize that your lock is weak,
         | _instead_ of trying to fix it, you try to hide the weakness.
         | And that 's the idea that LPL criticizes in his talk.
         | 
         | Hiding his identity is most likely not his only defense against
         | the craziness of the internet. From his videos, we know that he
         | has guns, and who knows what he secures his house with. He is
         | most likely prepared to deal with the consequences of an
         | identity leak, but that doesn't mean he wants it to happen.
         | That's defense in depth, an other important part of security.
        
           | elcomet wrote:
           | > From his videos, we know that he has guns
           | 
           | This is interesting because we know that's not a good
           | security. In fact, it has been shown that having a gun in the
           | house is associated with more firearm-related deaths and not
           | less. So I suggest anyone that is thinking of buying guns to
           | read this.
           | 
           | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15522849/
        
             | [deleted]
        
           | lgsilver wrote:
           | Yep. That's totally fair and you're right. Would be
           | interesting for him to compare / analogize that with the lock
           | companies' approach.
        
       | mongol wrote:
       | Has there ever been a lock which he could not pick?
        
         | alserio wrote:
         | If you watch the conf video, he couldn't get into his wife's
         | Beaver and just gave up. But he's done it with ease in other
         | videos.
        
           | arka2147483647 wrote:
           | What would be the odds that was an intentional joke!
        
             | Twisol wrote:
             | Very intentional. He's also quite self-aware -- later in
             | the same keynote, he says something about using a hole for
             | something it wasn't designed for, then notes how wrong that
             | sounded.
        
             | aix1 wrote:
             | For those not familiar with his channel, he's got a whole
             | April Fools theme going. Here's another classic:
             | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9VewWKfH_0
        
             | dugmartin wrote:
             | Watch his April Fools Day videos - they are full of not
             | very subtle innuendo (and pretty funny).
        
         | the_mitsuhiko wrote:
         | A lot of security locks he does not pick. I know that quite a
         | few EVVA locks people were interested in but they were never
         | picked.
        
         | cillian64 wrote:
         | Last time I looked I couldn't find any convincing videos of
         | anyone picking an Abloy Protec2 cylinder. Abloy cylinders
         | aren't that uncommon so I took that as a sign of these locks
         | being basically unpickable rather than nobody trying.
        
           | unclekev wrote:
           | > Abloy Protec2 cylinder
           | 
           | Something I hear quite often in lock picking circles is "The
           | only quick/reliable bypass for a Protec2 is a titanium drill
           | bit"
           | 
           | They are _exceptionally_ difficult to try and bypass with
           | traditional methods.
           | 
           | I've been picking as a hobby for 15+ years and picking the
           | Protec2 is a pipe dream I spent far too long chasing. Never
           | got it.
        
             | novok wrote:
             | For people who don't know much about drill bits, but know
             | that steel is harder than titanium, it's a drill coating of
             | titanium nitride or similar according to wikipedia that
             | makes it harder than stainless steel:
             | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drill_bit#Coatings
        
         | szundi wrote:
         | That would be interesting to know
        
           | mongol wrote:
           | Yes. After having watched the keynote, I have mixed feelings.
           | He keeps repeating how awful common locks are, and that it is
           | in the interest of lock users that that is revealed. But
           | never does he mention how a lock buyer can evaluate if a lock
           | is good. What should we look out for?
        
             | codezero wrote:
             | Look out for (keep away from) US residential lock brands,
             | like Schlage or anything you can buy at Home Depot. Newer
             | Kwikset locks are OK but still susceptible to some more
             | moderate attacks with a shim.
             | 
             | In general, try to get any "rated" European lock. They have
             | standards for pick resistance and brute force resistance
             | unlike retail US locks. Look for something with dimple
             | pins, an active element, or multiple pin stacks with
             | security pins, trap pins (anti tamper).
             | 
             | With all that said I don't think the low security locks we
             | have are such a problem. You can break a window open or
             | just find an unlocked door if you are looking to do some
             | bad shit. I like how Schuyler Towne put it: locks are just
             | a social contract. I'm saying, hey, don't go opening that
             | door, and as a civil society we agree not to.
             | 
             | A higher security lock on your home isn't going to make
             | your flimsy door harder to kick down, or your window harder
             | to break, so yeah it's nice to be educated on the security
             | trade offs you make physically, but I'm not sure it's
             | important to beef up residential security in the US.
        
               | mongol wrote:
               | I don't agree that locks are "just" a social contract. If
               | they were, the most simple and cheap lock would be
               | sufficient for everything. They are a social contract,
               | but they are also for theft prevention. Those people that
               | are determined to take something from you don't care
               | about that contract and you need as good lock as possible
               | to make it hard for them.
        
               | codezero wrote:
               | But attacking the lock is the last thing a smart or
               | determined person will do. Sure a better lock helps, this
               | is why most modern cars have much better locks than
               | homes, but even they can be easily opened with the right
               | tools, and often even easier with improvised tools.
               | 
               | Most locks really are cheap and sufficient for
               | everything, in the US, at least, because we are using
               | them right now. Schlage and Master Lock are everywhere
               | and I taught my sister to pick them in a single sitting
               | over drinks.
               | 
               | Even the most common combination locks are easily
               | openable without any tools whatsoever. All those key
               | holding real estate locks are even easier to open than
               | the doors the containing key opens.
               | 
               | But remember, social contracts of all kinds get broken,
               | and that's why we have a justice system.
        
               | [deleted]
        
               | Eelongate wrote:
               | > _But attacking the lock is the last thing a smart or
               | determined person will do._
               | 
               | I think that is contextual. In a whole lot of apartment
               | buildings, the windows into the apartment are
               | inaccessible from the outside. The door frame is metal,
               | so kicking down the door would wake half the apartment
               | building. Without a lock on the door, anybody who got
               | into the building (generally easy) could silently enter
               | any unoccupied apartment and nobody would know it. But
               | _with_ a good lock, nearly every would-be thief who can
               | 't pick locks will go someplace else.
        
               | novok wrote:
               | Most thieves DGAF that their target knows that they've
               | been broken into. They want to get stuff to sell later,
               | they want to be in and out very quickly, and they tend
               | not to be the smartest people out there, and having lock
               | picks increases your jail time if caught.
               | 
               | When a thief steals, you are going to notice the missing
               | items either way, a broken window doesn't change that
               | much. Apartment dwellers also tend to be poorer, which
               | makes homes the better target in more ways than one. If
               | the lock is too hard, your just getting more bashed in
               | doors or walls instead, or thieves / creeps climbing
               | porches and going in that way, which happened recently in
               | my area. Many porches are windows and often unlocked.
               | 
               | Also many apartments are not steel framed with steel
               | doors. I have a skinny window in the interior wall of
               | mine, and it's a solid wood door on a wood frame. Also
               | you could get a sledge hammer and bash through the
               | drywall. Or bring drills and take out the door that way.
               | 
               | Also having a fancy lock might actually make you more
               | attractive, because the thief casing out your place might
               | recognize it, think you might have more than the typical
               | person and bring the appropriate battery powered tool and
               | cut out the lock.
        
               | [deleted]
        
               | Twisol wrote:
               | > You can break a window open or just find an unlocked
               | door if you are looking to do some bad shit.
               | 
               | > A higher security lock on your home isn't going to make
               | your flimsy door harder to kick down, or your window
               | harder to break
               | 
               | From the keynote, that's why LPL puts a heavy focus on
               | bike locks, gun safe locks, etc. The audiences for those
               | locks have a more vested interest in physical security
               | than mere "social conventions". A well-locked bike makes
               | it more difficult for a thief to get all the / enough
               | value from the target. A well-locked gun safe prevents
               | accidents and saves lives.
               | 
               | Also, I live in an apartment on an upper floor. No
               | accessible windows. The only viable way into my residence
               | is through the front door. (There are like two RFID-gated
               | doors before mine, but tailgating renders them pretty
               | ineffectual, and let's not talk about elevator security.
               | [0]) It's not worth it for me to put a better lock on my
               | door, but I'm also not kidding myself about its
               | effectiveness.
               | 
               | [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHf1vD5_b5I
        
               | formerly_proven wrote:
               | To be perfectly honest, I'm amazed how bad physical
               | security is in the residential and even commercial US
               | space. E.g. just the fact that deadlatches, which rely on
               | precise alignment of door and frame to actually be
               | locked, are a thing is amazing. The Euro-stuff has some
               | other issues (cylinder snapping), but at least the bolt-
               | for-locking is literally just a 8x40 mm bolt that goes
               | into the doorframe. I've also never even seen a flat
               | doorframe profile - not even bathroom stalls have them.
               | Manipulating stuff on the other side becomes pretty easy
               | if there's a 9.3/64" gap between door and frame.
        
               | codezero wrote:
               | And yet, I would bet money that thefts in the US rarely
               | are from lock manipulation (picking, drilling, but maybe
               | brute force eg door frame). We have too many accessible
               | windows in the US, and a lot lower density, maybe this is
               | why Euro locks are more advanced, but regulation is also
               | a factor, we don't have it here, at least in residential,
               | which makes me wonder if we need it (I assume our
               | insurance system effectively covers the risk)
        
               | formerly_proven wrote:
               | Most of what I wrote is not about lock manipulation.
        
             | timonoko wrote:
             | From a row of cheap locks, you can easily find the best.
             | The key has deep cut (ie long pin) first. It is really
             | difficult to pick behind that first pin.
        
               | timonoko wrote:
               | Also the long pin might be long enuff to prevent comping,
               | as demonstrated by the Lock Picking Lawyer.
        
             | mongol wrote:
             | I am surprised that my comment is downvoted. I think my
             | criticism is valid
        
               | smolder wrote:
               | I think because you somewhat misunderstood the point of
               | the keynote at this security conference. Giving advice
               | about how to buy better locks is either going to be too
               | basic or too lengthy & detail oriented for a presentation
               | of this kind, meant to promote the practice of picking
               | and give historical context. (And entertain.)
        
         | dskloet wrote:
         | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29367405
        
       | russellbeattie wrote:
       | I have an idea for a LPL-proof lock: Take a decent padlock, one
       | that gets high marks from LPL, and then weld a curved steel tube
       | to it ending at the keyhole. Then take the key and cut it in half
       | at the head, welding a long stiff spring to attach the two
       | halves, like a plumber's snake. To unlock, you simply stick the
       | key bit down the tube around the bend and (with some fiddling I'm
       | sure) into the keyway, then you can turn the key to open.
       | 
       | Without direct access to the tumbler, I'm not sure how you'd be
       | able to pick it.
        
         | svennek wrote:
         | Some safes I have seen have insanely long keys, like 20 cm of
         | "trunk"... I wonder if that is the reason ...
        
           | formerly_proven wrote:
           | The lock is on the inside and the key reaches through the
           | entire door.
        
         | userbinator wrote:
         | To pick that, he would probably just make a pick and tensioner
         | that has a similarly long flexible shaft.
        
         | dmitriid wrote:
         | > I have an idea for a LPL-proof lock
         | 
         | There's a lock on his channel that he can't open. Bowley lock:
         | https://youtu.be/qV8QKZNFxLw and there's a different prototype,
         | too: https://youtu.be/D6vioIPVzM4
        
           | ryzvonusef wrote:
           | there was some kerkuffle aboyut whether he actually tried to
           | pick it, since it could be picked:
           | 
           | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KS0FSzamUzc
           | 
           | Or maybe the picker aligned his stars when picking... not
           | sure
        
             | dmitriid wrote:
             | This is amazing. Thank you!
             | 
             | There's discussion in the comments with Bowley Lock Company
             | Inc saying that the stars did align, but we might never
             | know
        
             | raverbashing wrote:
             | Yes, if you push hard enough everything is "pickable" I
             | guess
             | 
             | But an easy code, power tools and having the lock in an
             | ideal work position doesn't make it easily pickable.
             | 
             | Sounds like the same useless discussions on computer
             | security where people will discuss key sizes but not
             | rubberhose cryptography.
        
         | ryzvonusef wrote:
         | are you perhaps talking about the forever lock?
         | 
         | https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Forever+Lock
         | 
         | while difficult, it can be undone
         | 
         | -----
         | 
         | making a one-off "unpickable" lock is possible, here is some
         | to-and fro between two youtube channels about such locks:
         | 
         | Stuff Made Here:
         | 
         | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7vPNcnYWQ4
         | 
         | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A2NY29iQdI
         | 
         | Lock Picking Lawyer:
         | 
         | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ecy1FBdCRbQ
         | 
         | But things from installation issues, to making sure tolerances
         | are maintained while making the locks on a production line,
         | mean that there are always some gaps left in a mass produced
         | and installed lock.
        
           | filoeleven wrote:
           | Their friendly competition was fun to watch. LPL made some
           | great suggestions for improvements, and was impressed by the
           | idea that Stuff Made Here came up with as a physical security
           | "outsider."
        
           | istjohn wrote:
           | Here's a video of the Forever Lock being defeated with a
           | custom-made bump key:
           | https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=H4f1H6mYHOI
        
       | userbinator wrote:
       | If you watch LPL enough, you get the notion that most locks are
       | for keeping honest people honest rather than stopping a
       | determined attacker. All the comments from people who have
       | managed to lock themselves out further reinforce that.
        
         | LanceH wrote:
         | I bought lockpicks for the kids when covid hit for something to
         | do. Within an hour, everyone could open the practice lock which
         | is in a clear casing. Within a week, we could all open your
         | typical masterlock and my daughter could open any of the locks
         | you might purchase from home depot.
        
         | Fnoord wrote:
         | Some locks are surprisingly easy to open, despite being highly
         | in use.
         | 
         | Locks are to slow an attacker. A determined attacker can bypass
         | almost any lock, but not stealthy enough. If you drill the lock
         | in my front door, you wake up the entire street. If you can
         | pick it in 30 sec in the middle of the night, you wouldn't wake
         | up anyone, but some kind of camera probably picked you up.
         | 
         | I used to pass this bicycle parking at a train station twice a
         | day. I'd always look at the locks (or lack thereof) while
         | walking, quickly thinking which ones I could certainly open
         | (and the question is always: how quick). But I never gave in to
         | the desire, despite a lack of locks and peers (for
         | practice/fun).
        
           | stjohnswarts wrote:
           | If you pick my lock and open my door (or any window in my
           | house) you and I will hear a 90 dB siren and I'll be waiting
           | with a 12 gauge in about 5 seconds after the alarm goes off.
           | I don't understand why anyone doesn't have a basic security
           | and motion sensor setup in their house in this day and age.
        
         | LinuxBender wrote:
         | The locks I am most impressed with are from the days of alcohol
         | prohibition. Some doors to speak-easy's looked like part of the
         | wall, had no key holes. Rather just small holes all over the
         | "wall" and you had to poke a piece of metal through the right
         | holes and push/pull the wall in a known way. No windows, no
         | appearance of a room, just a wall. The stairs leading down to
         | it would usually go right past the "door" into a basement
         | storage room with nothing exciting to see. The cops could walk
         | right past the door a thousand times. It might be fun to build
         | a home like this. I suppose you just have to design it so
         | people can not see where you actually entered.
        
           | andrewflnr wrote:
           | Reminds me of port knocking. Is there a name for these, info
           | on how they're designed?
        
         | iso1210 wrote:
         | You have to realise that LPL has a very specific set of skills.
         | Skills he has acquired over a very long career. Skills that
         | make hom a nightmare for people like masterlock.
         | 
         | I had a locksmith out a couple of years ago, and was very
         | disappointed when he simply got out a drill rather than
         | starting with 'click out of one'.
         | 
         | LPL makes things look easy, I'm sure they aren't.
        
           | tylermenezes wrote:
           | Locks are worse than you think. I'm not skilled, I don't
           | practice, but I've been able to get my parents back in their
           | house within 5 minutes both times they've locked themselves
           | out.
           | 
           | You call out masterlock but they're particularly bad. I lost
           | the key to one and kept using it for a year because unlocking
           | it was as simple as just putting the pick in while turning.
        
           | celticninja wrote:
           | The locksmith drills your lock because it takes no skill and
           | allows them to sell (or forces you to buy) a new lock and set
           | of keys at whatever weird time of day it happens to be. The
           | price is almost certainly going to be higher out of normal
           | hours. Plus if he picks the lock in 30 seconds you may not
           | pay such a high fee.
        
             | dwighttk wrote:
             | If he picked it as fast as LPL does some locks I may be
             | inclined to buy a new lock from them
        
             | wayoutthere wrote:
             | The one who I call is more than happy to drive by, smack a
             | bump key with a hammer and charge me $125 for the pleasure.
        
             | nirui wrote:
             | I would probably (mentally) look down on the locksmith if
             | he/she just going to drill it out without trying anything
             | else first. I own a power drill too and I know how to use
             | it to break a lock myself with zero knowledge on how lock
             | works (for some weak locks, even a flat head screwdriver is
             | enough to get it done).
             | 
             | On the other hand, if the locksmith clicked my lock out in
             | just 30 seconds, I would probably ask him/her to sell me a
             | better (and sometimes more expensive) lock based on his/her
             | professional opinion.
        
               | loloquwowndueo wrote:
               | But how are you going to get your power drill if you're
               | locked outside? :)
        
               | eatbitseveryday wrote:
               | Garage door opener glued to the outside that uses a PIN?
        
               | loloquwowndueo wrote:
               | You assume a garage exists or that said person keeps
               | tools there and not in the basement.
        
               | accountofme wrote:
               | The hardware store?
        
             | RyJones wrote:
             | I locked myself out one night and called a service. The guy
             | showed up and asked if I wanted a show, or the door open. I
             | said open the door please. He did in about ten seconds and
             | I gladly paid full fare for the work.
             | 
             | Spoiler: he leaned on the door to hold the latch in place,
             | then used a plastic shim to trip it open.
        
             | kzrdude wrote:
             | Don't you need a new lock anyway? After all, you no longer
             | have the keys.
        
               | evilduck wrote:
               | A locksmith (or interested individual) can rekey a lock.
               | The pins and keys are the cheapest part of the lock too,
               | which is a contributing factor towards why locksmiths
               | lean towards destructive entry. They get to be lazy, the
               | method can't fail and make them look stupid in front of a
               | customer and they get to offer you a sales pitch on
               | buying a new lock right then and there.
        
             | paranoidrobot wrote:
             | > Plus if he picks the lock in 30 seconds you may not pay
             | such a high fee.
             | 
             | A story I was told once by an electrician who worked at a
             | steel works for years.
             | 
             | The story goes something like this:
             | 
             | One day he was called out to a big engineering workshop,
             | all their fancy new equipment is on the blink.
             | 
             | He walks up to one of the machines, has a look, then
             | without saying anything promptly turns around and walks
             | outside, followed by the curious manager.
             | 
             | The electrician circles the building and turns on the first
             | tap he sees, and lets the water flow for a few minutes
             | spilling on the ground. After leaving that go for a while,
             | he turns the tap off again, and walks back in and tells the
             | machine operators to try again. Magically, they all start
             | working again.
             | 
             | The electrician has been there for barely a few minutes and
             | hasn't even touched the machine or anything else
             | electrical.
             | 
             | The manager asks for an explanation, since the electrician
             | didn't even touch anything electrical. By way of response,
             | the electrician says "You had someone fix that tap outside
             | that was leaking, didn't you?" the manager replies in the
             | affirmative. The electrician then explains that the leaking
             | tap was keeping the building grounded - the slow leak was
             | just enough to keep the sandy soils moist enough for a
             | proper earth connection.
             | 
             | The electrician hands over the bill, with the emergency
             | callout fee and minimum hours, etc. The manager protests
             | that surely just turning on a tap didn't warrant a fee that
             | large.
             | 
             | The electrician replies that turning the tap on was free,
             | knowing to turn the tap on was what they were paying for.
             | 
             | Whether that story is true or not, there's plenty of
             | similar ones.
             | 
             | The point is that while you might get annoyed that an
             | expert came in and solved the problem quickly, without that
             | expert you were going to wait a lot longer or spend a lot
             | more trying to fix it some other way.
             | 
             | Personally, I'd rather deal with a locksmith that gave me
             | the option: We can drill the lock, you can pay (say) $300
             | for new locks and keys and it'll take 30 minutes. Or, you
             | can pay $300, we'll pick it in a minute, you keep your
             | existing keys.
             | 
             | The locksmith I called a few years ago used a long piece of
             | wire with a string attached, slid it under the door to pull
             | down the door handle from the inside.
        
               | jcrawfordor wrote:
               | This seems like a variation on the old story about
               | Steinmetz, the Wizard of Schenectady, making a chalk mark
               | on a generator at a Ford plant. Which seems to be a true
               | story, although often not attributed. The punchline to
               | this one has always been Steinmetz's itemized bill, of $1
               | to make the chalk mark and $9,999 to know where to make
               | it.
        
               | iso1210 wrote:
               | Another version of the old "hit with a hammer" parable,
               | albeit one where the incompetence of the elecrtician is
               | rewarded.
        
           | lathiat wrote:
           | Time to watch this one
           | 
           | "Locksmith says my videos are BS... Loses $75 (Maybe)"
           | 
           | https://youtu.be/NSuaUok-wTY
           | 
           | Also if you actually watch this keynote half the problem
           | isn't locks you can actually pick but stuff you can just open
           | with very basic tools that don't even require the skill he
           | has. Like combs, rakes, hammers, slithers of metal, etc.
        
           | delusional wrote:
           | You have to excuse that I didn't watch the video, so i might
           | be missing some context.
           | 
           | LPL's career isn't lockpicking is it? I was under the
           | impression that it was just a hobby that turned into a
           | youtube channel. I seem to recall him saying that he just
           | picks locks all the time, and that's why he's good. I think
           | he said that when he watches movies he takes a 30 locks and
           | then he just sits there and picks them while watching.
        
             | Quequau wrote:
             | It wasn't (he used to be lawyer) but he's won lock picking
             | contests, apparently has a gargantuan collection of locks
             | some of which he habitually practises on, and these days
             | runs a company that sells lock picking tools (though I have
             | no idea if that's his only gig).
             | 
             | Anyway, if you watch all / most of his videos the near
             | constant refrain running through them isn't "with finely
             | honed skills and the right hard to find speciality tools
             | it's easy to open this lock" (though he does do that).
             | Instead it's: "it's easy to open this lock with no or few
             | skills, no or little practice, with trivially found,
             | improvised, or purchased tools, using exploits that have
             | been known in the lock manufacturing and locksmithing
             | industries for decades or centuries".
             | 
             | That in turn is his point in this keynote. These exploits
             | have been known in the lock manufacturing and locksmithing
             | industries for decades or centuries and yet many, perhaps
             | most of the locks that people can buy in stores, still have
             | those flaws (which are easy and inexpensive to eliminate in
             | the design and construction process).
        
               | donatzsky wrote:
               | > (though I have no idea if that's his only gig).
               | 
               | Pretty sure it's not. From what I've gathered, watching
               | his videos, he's also doing consulting/training for
               | companies on physical security.
        
           | xondono wrote:
           | > I had a locksmith out a couple of years ago, and was very
           | disappointed when he simply got out a drill rather than
           | starting with 'click out of one'.
           | 
           | That's a common occurrence because of the incentives. The
           | locksmith wants to spend as little time as possible (average
           | time), and doesn't pay a premium for destroying the lock,
           | since most people don't confront them on that.
           | 
           | LPL is amazing, but any decent locksmith could get at least
           | near enough him in competence. It's not that it's so hard
           | that very little people can do it, it's that is very niche
           | for most people to learn.
        
             | celticninja wrote:
             | I bet most locksmiths are the drill and replace type and
             | could not pick a lock reliably anyway. Locksmiths are
             | taught how to dismantle and remove a lock these days rather
             | than how a lock works and therefore how to beat it.
        
               | xondono wrote:
               | After thinking about this, I realized it makes a lot of
               | sense given what LPL is saying.
               | 
               | After all, if you spent a fortune in some lock and the
               | locksmith can open it in 5 seconds flat, you'll feel
               | ripped off. It's possible that a lot locksmiths believe
               | the locks to be safe, and they think they're saving time
               | by going the drill route.
               | 
               | Not to mention that if the locksmith is selling you the
               | lock, he will want to avoid damaging their reputation.
        
             | TravelPiglet wrote:
             | Damaging the lock in the process of picking it is also an
             | outcome that isn't shown in the videos. LPL damages locks
             | as well.
        
           | lrvick wrote:
           | Honestly, when it comes to most US locks, they really are a
           | joke.
           | 
           | I learned to pick my parents safe and door locks by 8, and
           | have taught dozens of children to pick virtually every lock
           | you can find in a hardware store.
           | 
           | As a security engineer the first thing I teach peers isn't
           | even software, but lock picking.
           | 
           | Peoples minds really open up when you show them how to open
           | every lock in their own office in under an hour of training.
           | 
           | "Is security on almost everything we trust every day really
           | this shit?!"
           | 
           | "Yes"
        
             | techdragon wrote:
             | Thank you for this insight. I will forever advise anyone
             | interested in getting started with computer security to
             | learn lock picking first. Having done both In the other
             | order id never thought of how insightful it is for fully
             | realise the fragility of the illusion of safety as it
             | exists in the real world as a better grounding for anyone
             | about to learn the fragility of everything in the more
             | complex and more abstract digital world.
        
           | Quequau wrote:
           | I feel like this comment comes up every time LPL is discussed
           | outside of his context and I think it discounts the hundreds
           | of low / no skill attacks he has demonstrated which apply to
           | many, probably most, of the locks with recognisable name
           | brands that are for sale in brick & mortar stores.
           | 
           | It took me 30 minutes to make and use a tool that he
           | demonstrated using on a lock similar to one I own and most of
           | that time was spent rummaging around my place trying find
           | stuff.
           | 
           | Lastly, I think you got taken advantage of by a locksmith out
           | to sell more locks and keys.
        
             | notatoad wrote:
             | The biggest part of the LPL skillset is his knowledge about
             | all the low-skill attacks that exist, and which locks they
             | work on. Low-skill attacks are only effective if you know
             | about them, and remember which locks each exploit applies
             | to.
             | 
             | The only low-skill attack that seems to have any widespread
             | effectiveness (and would therefore be worth trying on every
             | lock) is raking, and that is pretty easily defeated by any
             | lockmaker who cares.
        
               | Quequau wrote:
               | I believe that "low skilled attack" also includes the
               | ability to search the internet and watch a video. There
               | are literally thousands of videos on YouTube with
               | demonstrations of low skilled attacks using improvised
               | tools.
               | 
               | For example I made a shim and opened a lock I own in less
               | than 30 minutes after watching one of his videos that
               | featured a similar lock. I had never opened a lock
               | without a key before that day, don't have much use of two
               | fingers on one hand, and my toolbox fits in a kitchen
               | drawer.
               | 
               | For your list of common low skill attacks which have
               | widespread effectiveness I would also include shimming,
               | hammering, and cutting. Also in the case of locks with
               | electronics associated with them, strong magnets.
        
               | sdmike1 wrote:
               | He is also a very skilled SPPer which he will frequently
               | demonstrate. He mentioned in the video the reason he uses
               | so many low skill attacks is because they work so well on
               | locks people *care* about.
        
           | josefx wrote:
           | Going by a presentation from a professional pen tester lock
           | picking is usually far down on their list because there are
           | easier ways to open many doors without picking the lock.
           | 
           | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnmcRTnTNC8
           | 
           | Someone who wants to get in is probably already on his way
           | out while LPL is only halfway through with the lock.
        
             | JshWright wrote:
             | A big part of what LPL does is exploit those non-
             | destructive bypasses.
        
         | xwolfi wrote:
         | Many crimes are committed out of opportunity rather than
         | careful obstinate planning, especially lock picking / breaking
         | and entering:
         | https://popcenter.asu.edu/sites/default/files/opportunity_ma...
         | 
         | In other words, if there was no lock, I'd enter houses that I
         | can reasonably think are empty / populated by feeble elders
         | myself eventually, however "honest" I appear to be now when I'm
         | surrounded with locks and barriers to crime in general.
        
         | gonzo41 wrote:
         | The best thing I learnt from lock picking lawyer was that hand
         | pumped hydraulic bolt cutters existed.
        
         | lrvick wrote:
         | There are piles of great locks out there no one, including LPL,
         | can open non destructively in hours of work, if at all.
         | 
         | The trouble is very few of these can be found in the US as
         | consumers here favor low prices and a 10/10 promise over any
         | actual security.
        
           | asimpletune wrote:
           | Really? Asking because people send him locks all the time
           | from all over the world, and he opens them all.
        
             | lrvick wrote:
             | He doesn't open them all. He videos the ones he -can- open
             | to shame them.
             | 
             | The Kwikset smart key v3 can't be picked because you get no
             | feedback until all pins are set. You can decode them one
             | pin at a time with expensive specialized tools such as a
             | micro camera put into the cylinder but they will keep
             | someone out for a while so they do their job. You still
             | need to cut a custom key to get in even when you decode it
             | so it is time consuming.
             | 
             | A Medeco will keep out even an experienced lockpicker for a
             | while since pins must be in the right rotation and the
             | right heights.
             | 
             | Beyond that there are really good Disk Detainer locks like
             | the Protec 2 that have no feedback until all discs are
             | correct. There are 0 public confirmed defeats of them.
             | 
             | Beyond that you get into hybrid digital keys like the Cliq.
             | Then you can combine an cylinder known to not have any
             | defeats with a second set of pins that can only be engaged
             | after an AES challenge/response between a microcontroller
             | in the key and one in the lock.
             | 
             | These also have never been defeated.
             | 
             | There are also solutions like the Bowley lock that don't
             | expose the tumblers to the outside world and can only be
             | defeated with many hours of work making custom tools for
             | that specific lock.
             | 
             | I could go on and on.
             | 
             | The reason you can't buy good locks at US hardware stores
             | is fully because the uneducated masses rejected high
             | security locks once companies like master lock pumped out
             | $5 locks with 10/10 security ratings in spite of any
             | informed child being able to open them.
             | 
             | I would love to see people like LPL put their lawyer hats
             | on and sue these companies for dangerously deceptive
             | advertising.
        
               | paulhart wrote:
               | He also talks about things he can't pick - here's a video
               | on the Bowley where he almost immediately admits he can't
               | pick it:
               | 
               | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qV8QKZNFxLw
               | 
               | There are a couple of (old) videos on Medeco locks:
               | 
               | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmyC7KM5Qxk
               | 
               | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fh6IHCr7uo
               | 
               | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avwt39uHDOQ
               | 
               | Related to the Disc Detainer (come for the tooling
               | discussion, stay for the picking):
               | 
               | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRO5wzAaT00
        
               | lrvick wrote:
               | Others have picked the Bowley even though LPL can't but
               | it is more time and work than anyone could reasonably be
               | able to do in a real world application so if anything
               | those efforts are a strong endorsement of the lock.
        
               | BenjiWiebe wrote:
               | Kwikset Smart Key V3 can be picked, for example:
               | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--tva7GA9f4
               | 
               | Protec2: Very very difficult to pick, however there are
               | videos of a few picking it:
               | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zVSJ_wauwg (https://www.
               | reddit.com/r/lockpicking/comments/edrrjo/hardest...)
               | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AsG90UGRTpw (https://www.
               | reddit.com/r/lockpicking/comments/mie59t/abloy_p...)
               | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UZ6tcvgd9U
               | 
               | The Protec2 I would trust far more than the Kwikset
               | SmartKey V3, since it appears only several of the best of
               | the locksport community have been able to pick it.
               | 
               | I couldn't find record of anyone opening a Cliq. I'd be
               | hesitant to say that's because they are unpickable,
               | though. I believe quite a number of the locksport
               | community would not be very interested in attempting to
               | open a Cliq as it isn't purely mechanical.
        
               | lrvick wrote:
               | Fair points and thanks for the corrections. I
               | underestimated how many new developments the pandemic
               | would yield since I last did a deep dive here.
               | 
               | Still they are all well designed locks.
               | 
               | I recommend the smartkey v3 for people that need a lot of
               | locks they can source quickly on a budget. The sidebar
               | design is a real pain to defeat and if the lock is in a
               | body with tight tolerances you may not be able to shim
               | the sidebar at all. Without some kind of attack to
               | tension the sidebar they can't be directly picked.
               | 
               | For those with more money to burn the Medecos are good
               | security for dollar.
               | 
               | I put a couple Protecs on my luggage as tamper evidence
               | devices so the TSA has to call me when they need to
               | search it.
               | 
               | I would not bother with Protecs on a home as they are
               | very expensive and there are generally better areas you
               | can invest in home security for that kind of money but if
               | you have a small number of ingress doors they are nice.
               | 
               | I don't think anything is unpickable/unbackable but when
               | the time to defeat a particular lock someone has not seen
               | before takes 10 minutes to hours and few if any in the
               | world can do it I classify it as a "good" lock when the
               | status quo can be defeated in seconds.
        
               | asimpletune wrote:
               | Ah ok, interesting. Thanks for the information. I wonder
               | if LPL is on HN and is reading any of this.
        
           | hun-nemethpeter wrote:
           | Can you name or even link a few?
        
         | gambiting wrote:
         | So the interesting thing is that nearly all home insurance
         | policies stipulate that you're only covered for theft if there
         | are signs of forced entry - but clearly, any lock can be picked
         | without leaving a mark. So I'd assume either these policies are
         | a scam, or actual real world thieves are not very good
         | lockpickers and a good old crowbar is simply faster and easier.
        
           | switch007 wrote:
           | My policy from a large building society in the UK has an
           | explicit section for cover for theft /not/ using force and
           | violence, but it doesn't apply if the house is
           | lent/let/sublet. That is covered by the preceding section of
           | theft using force and violence.
           | 
           | I.e. force and violence required if letting the property.
        
             | wdb wrote:
             | Yeah, that makes insurances pretty useless. I have a
             | jewellery insurance but it but the number of outs for the
             | insurance company is saddening. I need to get hurt when I
             | getting robbed on the street before they will cover the
             | theft of my watch. One of the reasons why I mostly wear
             | some watches at home. And if I get violently robbed they
             | only cover up to the retail price and not the replacement
             | cost/price.
             | 
             | If anyone know a better insurance the cover the above cases
             | in the UK. Please tell me.
        
           | formerly_proven wrote:
           | Lockpicking leaves marks inside the lock which look nothing
           | like what a key leaves behind.
           | http://www.lockpickingforensics.com/
        
             | mtreis86 wrote:
             | Depends on the atack, a Lishi key should leave little to no
             | scratches on the pins. Raking would leave the most.
        
               | formerly_proven wrote:
               | > a Lishi key should leave little to no scratches on the
               | pins
               | 
               | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YFW0nh7h3I
        
               | pdpi wrote:
               | The marks you're looking for are on the sides of the
               | pins, where they get jammed against the barrel. The Lishi
               | doesn't help that much in preventing this damage
        
             | gambiting wrote:
             | Huh that is very interesting. However I suspect that unless
             | the door was actually damaged the insurer would just go
             | "yeah you didn't lock your door, no claim for you" - I
             | guess you'd have to pay to get your own lock forensics
             | done.
        
               | smolder wrote:
               | Yeah, the insurance company isn't going to go out of its
               | way to prove they _should_ pay a claim. But it could be
               | useful for a claimant trying to get compensated.
        
             | sandworm101 wrote:
             | Unless they stole your gold brick collection, no insurance
             | company is going to dismantle your locks (all of them) and
             | send them for forensic tests. Nor would they accept your
             | hired expert opinion. Such procedures are only rational in
             | extreme cases.
        
               | dwighttk wrote:
               | > Nor would they accept your hired expert opinion.
               | 
               | I guess they'd be hearing from my lawyer...
               | 
               | My lock picking lawyer...
        
           | phonon wrote:
           | Source please? Standard HO-3 policy defines theft coverage as
           | 
           | 9. Theft
           | 
           | a. This peril includes attempted theft and loss of property
           | from a known place when it is likely that the property has
           | been stolen.
           | 
           | b. This peril does not include loss caused by theft:
           | 
           | (1) Committed by an "insured";
           | 
           | (2) In or to a dwelling under construction, or of materials
           | and supplies for use in the construction until the dwelling
           | is finished and occupied;
           | 
           | (3) From that part of a "residence premises" rented by an
           | "insured" to someone other than another "insured"; or
           | 
           | (4) That occurs off the "residence premises" of:
           | 
           | (a) Trailers, semitrailers and campers; (b) Watercraft of all
           | types, and their furnishings, equipment and outboard engines
           | or motors; or (c) Property while at any other residence owned
           | by, rented to, or occupied by an "insured", except while an
           | "insured" is temporarily living there. Property of an
           | "insured" who is a student is covered while at the residence
           | the student occupies to attend school as long as the student
           | has been there at any time during the 60 days immediately
           | before the loss
        
           | stjohnswarts wrote:
           | So you're telling me if I'm ever robbed by an ex roommate who
           | made a copy of the key I should take a crowbar to my door?
        
             | gambiting wrote:
             | I mean, I'm not saying that you would, but I don't see how
             | the rational decision when you find out you've been robbed
             | isn't to break a window yourself. If there's no signs of
             | entry then you simply aren't covered.
        
         | thurn wrote:
         | It's really interesting stuff, although realistically, the
         | situations in which it matters how hard to pick a lock is are
         | pretty rare -- the majority of situations where an evil actor
         | is trying to bypass a lock are ones where they'd be willing to
         | employ destructive techniques instead.
        
         | michaelt wrote:
         | Well, there's a selection bias in LPL's videos: If he can't
         | pick a lock _today,_ he doesn 't make a video until he _can._
         | 
         | But you're right at a higher level: 99% of buildings have glass
         | windows. Paying $$$$ for locks that go beyond "keeping honest
         | people honest" is pointless if they can be bypassed with a
         | rock.
        
           | qwertox wrote:
           | Breaking glass is noisy. If that would happen in my city, the
           | entire neighborhood would know.
        
             | morsch wrote:
             | Presumably thieves professional enough to pick locks are
             | also able to break glass windows without making a lot of
             | noise?
        
               | lrvick wrote:
               | Most professional locksmiths can't even pick locks, let
               | alone any successful former thieves I have known. You
               | will rarely see either not go directly for a destructive
               | entry method even when trivial bypasses are available if
               | one had bothered to research.
               | 
               | Lock picking is basically only found among the locksport
               | community.
        
             | Lhiw wrote:
             | A rock wrapped in a t-shirt doesn't make much sound.
        
             | aspaviento wrote:
             | Isn't that the reason why you put tape on the glass first?
        
             | corobo wrote:
             | The neighbourhood might hear it but if nobody reacts who
             | cares (from a burglary point of view)
             | 
             | If a car alarm goes off my reaction is not "oh no, someone
             | is stealing a car" it's "man I hope they know how to shut
             | that off quickly"
        
             | hellbannedguy wrote:
             | 1. Break glass.
             | 
             | 2. retreat to safe area.
             | 
             | 3. look for security, or commotion.
             | 
             | 4. Come back and loot the place.
             | 
             | 5. #2 senerio. Just open the unlocked door, and loot the
             | place while the family members are in the home.
             | 
             | (We had a mountian bike thief that did this senerio for
             | years, and was never caught in my wealthy enclave. It's
             | estimated he stole over a million plus dollars. I always
             | thought it was a unhinged angry doctor, or a lawyer.
             | Doctor's wives shoplift in huge numbers. It's a behavioral
             | psychological thing. Ask any security guard who steals the
             | most. They are never arrested because they spend a lot in
             | stores. Nordstrom's turns in the minority shoplifters, but
             | let go the white wealthy ones. How do I know? Used to be a
             | Security guard, and hoping Nordstrom's would be outed by
             | now.)
        
           | stjohnswarts wrote:
           | gone in 60 seconds "i gotta get my tool"
           | 
           | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJN6VHWaerA
        
           | martincmartin wrote:
           | I've heard the common way a burglar opens a door is using a
           | crowbar.
        
             | wayoutthere wrote:
             | Last time I called a locksmith to let me into my house (me
             | losing my keys and locking myself out is a somewhat
             | frequent occurrence) he didn't even bother trying to pick
             | it. Just took a few plastic wedges and used a rubber mallet
             | to hammer them in between the door and the frame and the
             | whole thing popped open. Took maybe 5 seconds.
             | 
             | Of course, you can reinforce your door frame and this
             | doesn't work. But the next locksmith (like I said, regular
             | occurrence) used a bump key to pick it and was in just as
             | fast.
             | 
             | Needless to say, I don't trust door locks anymore.
        
               | JKCalhoun wrote:
               | The simplest were the old car-jacks that you could put
               | sideways across a door: a few clicks to expand the jack
               | and you could push the door frame out of linear enough
               | that you can swing the door right open -- lock catch no
               | longer reaches.
        
               | JshWright wrote:
               | This is my go-to technique for lockouts (I'm a
               | firefighter, we'll get called for more "urgent"
               | lockouts... a young child still inside, something on the
               | stove, etc).
               | 
               | There are plenty of custom made tools on the market that
               | do a great job (with built-in pads to protect the door
               | frame, etc).
               | 
               | The only issue they commonly run into is a deadbolt with
               | a throw long enough that you have to destroy the jamb and
               | surrounding frame before it comes free.
        
               | tgsovlerkhgsel wrote:
               | Is this technique non-destructive and the frame returns
               | to its original shape? From the description it sounded
               | like it'd be way worse than something that destroys the
               | entire door.
        
               | bbradley406 wrote:
               | You're just bowing the framing out enough for the bolt to
               | clear, so maybe 1/4" inch in each direction. The studs
               | will pop right back, but you might need to re-align the
               | hinges or the bolt plate after.
        
               | JshWright wrote:
               | Ideally, yes. Wood is surprisingly flexible. Generally
               | the worst that happens is that the paint cracks at the
               | seams between the frame and the trim, or the jamb.
               | 
               | In cases where the deadbolt extends significantly into
               | the frame, then yes, it tends to be destructive. But
               | doors with locks that substantial tend to be sturdy
               | enough that brute forcing the door in any fashion (even
               | if you're just attacking the door itself) is likely to
               | damage the frame.
               | 
               | There are options for "through the lock" forcible entry,
               | where you attack the lock directly, using something like
               | a Rex tool[1]. That will definitely destroy the lock, but
               | usually preserves the door (but isn't suitable for every
               | type of lock).
               | 
               | [1] https://www.allhandsfire.com/Rex-Tool-Forcible-Entry-
               | Tool
        
               | toss1 wrote:
               | I had a friend who had a car with different keys for the
               | door and the ignition, and he lost the door key. I
               | fashioned a coat-hanger wire into a tool to slide down
               | the window and unlock the door.
               | 
               | By the time he got a replacement key, I was literally
               | faster at opening the door with my tool than he was with
               | his key -- once you get the knack of it...
               | 
               | (of course the tool was much more clumsy to carry around
               | than a key, and 2 seconds vs 3 isn't enough to care)
        
             | BrandoElFollito wrote:
             | I saw a video where someone was opening doors with a
             | hydraulic thing that moves heavyb things up (I do not know
             | the English word for that, an inversed press).
             | 
             | You find a strong pint to lean on (a wall, or the ground)
             | and the door is forced open in a matter of seconds
             | (something gives away, hinges or lock).
             | 
             | This is why my lock is a smart one, to make it easier for
             | people to get in (the ones I want to) and I know that a
             | burglar is not going to analyze the emission spectrum but
             | just force my door open.
             | 
             | I would definitely prefer him to use technonoly and not
             | break my door.
        
             | slothtrop wrote:
             | I'd sooner get door jam reinforcements for this reason. For
             | everything else, there's alarms. Some are meant to detect
             | windows breaking, but motion sensors are also a good catch
             | all. Security-film on windows also makes breaking them more
             | tedious.
        
               | wayoutthere wrote:
               | Glass break sensors are almost never installed in
               | residential homes; motion detectors are a lot cheaper,
               | easier to install and more effective since a lot of
               | attacks against windows don't involve breaking the glass.
        
               | slothtrop wrote:
               | Can't get much cheaper than a DOBERMAN SECURITY Ultra-
               | Slim.
        
             | gameswithgo wrote:
             | a swift kick or body slam often works too
        
               | zffr wrote:
               | I'm not sure that's so easy https://www.reddit.com/r/crin
               | ge/comments/jwpr1e/guy_tries_ki...
        
             | IgorPartola wrote:
             | From what I gather:
             | 
             | Bump keys are the simplest way to bypass common locks. You
             | can make one in a few hours and it's pretty much universal.
             | 
             | Most doors aren't that strong. You can't pick a lock but
             | you can just knock the door in.
             | 
             | If you can't knock a door in, try a window.
             | 
             | House has a security system? Get a ladder and go to the
             | second floor. Most security systems are only installed on
             | the first floor.
             | 
             | Or cut the phone line outside the house as that'll disable
             | the security system entirely (unless it's wireless).
             | 
             | If the security system has a combined control panel and
             | main board, just run in and smash it. Good systems separate
             | the control panel from the main board to delay the burglar
             | finding it and allowing the system to call for authorities.
             | 
             | Basically locks, security systems, cameras, reinforced door
             | frames, and protective film on windows are just delays, not
             | preventatives. The idea is to delay the burglar enough such
             | that they either get caught or so they decide to hit the
             | next house without as many obstacles.
        
               | mschuster91 wrote:
               | > You can't pick a lock but you can just knock the door
               | in.
               | 
               | A knocked-out door has the disadvantage of being noisy
               | and visible - random passersby may spot either the act or
               | the result and alert the police, whereas most won't even
               | spot the difference between someone using a legit key and
               | a comb key.
               | 
               | The more time passes between the burglary and the
               | discovery, the better for the burglar - if you're already
               | two counties away when the police establishes local
               | roadblocks these won't catch you, CCTV camera or ALPR
               | records get deleted, phone tower (=which phone was logged
               | in at a certain time in a certain area) records grow
               | bigger and harder to sift through, potential witnesses
               | forget details.
        
               | randombits0 wrote:
               | Raking is the simplest way to bypass common locks. I
               | don't recall ever seeing LPL bump a lock. It's certainly
               | not his first attack.
        
               | BenjiWiebe wrote:
               | Bump keys aren't quite universal. There are different
               | keyways. Plus, not all locks are pin-tumbler locks. Also,
               | this I'm not sure of, but I _think_ some quality pin-
               | tumbler locks are bump-resistant.
        
               | ploxiln wrote:
               | That's all true, but what's interesting is how
               | _ubiquitous_ the worst pin-tumbler lock design is. (I 'll
               | be honest, I never shopped for a _good_ lock either! I
               | 've only bought one extra lock for an apartment once, and
               | didn't care to get anything but the typical kind!)
               | 
               | The LPL is really similar to a lot of us, complaining
               | that "right-click isn't really hacking, view-source isn't
               | really hacking, come on your system is trivially broken"
               | but about the locks practically everyone uses.
               | 
               | We also complain about companies marketing Super
               | Military-Strength Proprietary Encryption but basic key
               | management not making sense ... similar to how LPL likes
               | to get the Pro Max Security big beefy trailer/fence locks
               | and show how they have some of the same trivial design
               | bugs as the cheap locks.
        
           | lrvick wrote:
           | Any lock or building is easy to defeat if you are willing to
           | be destructive. Good locks and windows are tamper evidence
           | devices above all else.
        
           | alex_h wrote:
           | LPL has discussed locks without being able to pick them, eg
           | the Bowley lock
           | 
           | https://youtu.be/qV8QKZNFxLw
        
             | intrasight wrote:
             | Does he or anyone else have a list of locks that are really
             | hard to pick?
        
       | asimpletune wrote:
       | Much has been made about LPL s and his astonishing skill, but I'd
       | like to briefly mention my appreciation for LPL the showman.
       | 
       | I really think the style and format of his show makes it so
       | incredibly watchable. I love his voice, the delivery, and the way
       | he so articulately breaks down how he thinks and approaches
       | problem solving. He really makes you feel like you could do it
       | too.
       | 
       | It's very subtle but as a showman he's one of the alltime best on
       | YouTube.
        
         | GuB-42 wrote:
         | He is a real lawyer after all, I believe that these are
         | important skills in the profession.
        
           | cianmm wrote:
           | From years of experience of being around Lawyers, many of
           | them seek the need to say things in the most unnecessary
           | complex and impersonal ways. Lawyers are often terrible
           | communicators.
        
             | _wldu wrote:
             | They are taught to speak that way in certain circumstances.
             | It's called "circumlocution".
             | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circumlocution
        
               | 13415 wrote:
               | What's the function, if I may ask? Is it to be more
               | persuasive, or not to get pinned down easily?
        
               | _wldu wrote:
               | In some cases, the purpose is to say something in such a
               | way that seems to have an opposite meaning to what is
               | being said.
               | 
               | Here's an example, _" I do not speak it in vanity, but
               | simply record the fact, that I was not unemployed in my
               | profession by the late John Jacob Astor;"_
               | 
               | He could have instead said, _" I always worked for John
               | Jacob Astor."_
               | 
               | For many more examples of this, read _" Bartleby, The
               | Scrivener"_ by Herman Melville.
               | 
               | https://gutenberg.org/cache/epub/11231/pg11231.txt
        
               | ehnto wrote:
               | I think it can help make ambiguous statements more robust
               | and complete. "I wasn't there" instead of "I was not at
               | the location stated at the time recorded in the
               | complaint".
               | 
               | I sometimes use it if I'm discussing something with
               | someone who likes to nitpick small details that aren't
               | relevant to the main point of the discussion. It can help
               | you railroad a discussion down a particular path. That
               | makes me sound super rude but it's more of a defensive
               | communication device in that circumstance.
        
               | mschuster91 wrote:
               | > or not to get pinned down easily?
               | 
               | This. When dealing with legal stuff, it's _very_ easy to
               | commit verbal mistakes that can sink your case - in
               | Canada, they passed the Apology Act of 2009 for that
               | reason.
        
               | speg wrote:
               | That's an Ontario law, but it looks like several other
               | provinces have something similar.
        
               | stjohnswarts wrote:
               | I've met more than a few engineers and CS people who can
               | do similar, especially when they get angry. Lawyers are
               | on another level though.
        
           | barney54 wrote:
           | These are important skills for the profession, but many
           | lawyers don't have them. The good ones do, however.
        
         | dwighttk wrote:
         | And the fact that he doesn't surround his videos with tons of
         | cruft to make them longer.
         | 
         | Probably the only YouTuber that tries to sell me stuff and I
         | totally think that is a good and natural idea.
        
           | thefunnyman wrote:
           | He's also the only YouTuber I've ever bought something from.
           | He does a great job of using the things he sells in videos to
           | demonstrate their value and he's not overly pushy about it
           | like many other creators. He'll simply mention that the tool
           | he uses is one that is available for purchase from him, no
           | different than mentioning the names of other tools he uses.
           | It's an ingenious and very effective sales pitch.
        
           | j16sdiz wrote:
           | In the linked video at 33:10, he said he deliberately make
           | his videos short.
        
           | modriano wrote:
           | In one of his videos he explained his process with videos. He
           | wants to rule out the possibility of deceptive editing, so he
           | only includes takes done in a single shot (at least for the
           | portion where he demonstrates the technique). As a result, he
           | keeps things short, as that reduces the chance of misspeaking
           | and having to reshoot.
        
           | mschuster91 wrote:
           | > And the fact that he doesn't surround his videos with tons
           | of cruft to make them longer.
           | 
           | Unlike most full-time Youtubers, LPL does not need to pad out
           | videos or pander to sponsors to make a living, and he doesn't
           | need to engage in clickbaiting and SEO/algorithm manipulation
           | to lure new viewers. This independency from anyone else is
           | what allows him the complete artistic control to do videos
           | the way he prefers.
        
             | dwighttk wrote:
             | It is interesting (read: irritating) to me that YouTube
             | never puts his videos in my algorithmic feed. Every other
             | channel to which I subscribe gets woven in but I had to
             | actually click the bell icon to get notified of new videos
             | for his channel.
        
               | asimpletune wrote:
               | It's probably because his videos are short so the algo
               | doesn't like them
        
             | reginold wrote:
             | Indeed, it's all about incentives. He said during the
             | keynote that his goal is to get the word out and change
             | locks for the better. So far he's seen more incentive to
             | get views than making money on the channel.
             | 
             | This will not always be the case. Given his goals, the
             | channel will change as his priorities shift. When he
             | reaches his goal "everyone is aware that locks suck", his
             | next goal is "change locks for the better". This will
             | involve designing and selling locks and pointing viewers
             | towards better locks in a commercial way.
        
               | mschuster91 wrote:
               | > This will involve designing and selling locks and
               | pointing viewers towards better locks in a commercial
               | way.
               | 
               | Designing and selling his own locks on his own store
               | would not be too different from his current business
               | model of selling lockpicking tools.
               | 
               | Pointing viewers towards better locks on a _commercial_
               | way is something I cannot _ever_ see him doing. For one,
               | he already points out there are some locks he cannot pick
               | (IIRC some Abloy models). But especially: LPLs authority
               | is directly derived from the fact he 's impartial and
               | unmotivated by financial decisions. Taking money for lock
               | recommendations would completely compromise that
               | impartiality. It's similar to amateur nude models on
               | Reddit and the "OnlyFans hate" - in the eyes of many
               | viewers, once the line between "they are doing what they
               | do for fun" and "they are in it only for the money"
               | blurs, the attractivity fades.
               | 
               | What I _do_ can see LPL do in the future - with far
               | better chances of profit for him - is sell consultancy
               | services and reviews to lockmakers. That would both fit
               | his goal of improving the lockmacking business as a whole
               | and net him a hefty chunk of money, without compromising
               | his outward image.
        
               | reginold wrote:
               | Monetization models are interesting. In most amateur's
               | case it seems to start out as "for fun" and then flip to
               | "for money". Instead it's simply a gradient of
               | incentives, whether acknowledged or not.
               | 
               | As cryptocurrencies and other models increasingly
               | securitize everything, I wonder what will happen to the
               | "amateur" market. As viewers we get so much free benefit
               | from the hard work of amateurs.
        
               | stjohnswarts wrote:
               | Eh locks are only as good as the doors they're attached
               | to. Any healthy adult male (and probably determined
               | females) can kick and shoulder through a typical door,
               | especially on suburban houses.
        
               | ohgodplsno wrote:
               | Shouldering/kicking through a door is made to break the
               | door at the hinges (unlikely), or the lock. An adult made
               | that tries to kick through the body a door and break it
               | open will take several minutes, at the very least.
        
               | stjohnswarts wrote:
               | You'd be surprised how quickly you can kick a door down
               | when your psycho (ex) girlfriend deadbolts your door and
               | says she's going to burn your house down because you are
               | evicting her.
        
           | stjohnswarts wrote:
           | I love videos that jump right into the meat of the video,
           | please put the fluff at the end :)
        
         | sleavey wrote:
         | > and the way he so articulately breaks down how he thinks and
         | approaches problem solving
         | 
         | Agreed. I think this video is a nice (simple) demonstration of
         | his style in this regard:
         | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SoGCIuO2XkM
        
         | bitexploder wrote:
         | Also, he doesn't start off being able to pick X lock in two
         | seconds or whatever. He fiddles with things a while until it's
         | optimized. That is what makes it entertaining as well. You
         | don't have to sit through the whole process. He usually notes
         | anything interesting that came up. Mostly you get results.
        
       | tgsovlerkhgsel wrote:
       | The intro explaining the weirdness he was exposed to as a result
       | of the channel was eye-opening and shocking to me. Some weirdness
       | is to be expected, but the level of stalking resulting from even
       | such a non-controversial channel is not something I would have
       | thought of.
       | 
       | Edit: Didn't think of the "locksmiths hate it" aspect that
       | probably explains at least some of the crazy (e.g. trackers).
        
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