Are smart door locks more or less secure than traditional door locks?

Cloudless ☼@feddit.uk to No Stupid Questions@lemmy.world – 239 points –
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Less. Look at any Lockpicking Lawyer video on YouTube as he demonstrates in real time how bad they are. Most of his videos are under 5 min

If you want to really turn yourself off smart locks check out any DefCon talk about smart locks or "smart" devices in general.

And most dumb locks can also be picked in under 5 minutes. The difference is a smart lock can alert me when someone who isn't me opens the door or leaves it open. Of course, most burglars are just going to break a window to get in.

There should be a separation between fully mechanical locks with electronic monitoring (ideal) and a mechanical lock with vital electronic components.

You can get a lot of locks which allows you to connect external mechanisms which can do just that. Don't know anything ready out of the box, though

SwitchBot makes a retrofit deadbolt controller that straps onto the inside

Funnily enough, if you have the best lock they’ll just break your door or window instead.

Much cheaper to replace a lock than the entire front door.

Something to keep in mind, also lots of smart locks down have a keyhole to pick, so they would actually increase your security when compared to most regular lockset.

A previous owner of my apartment had for some reason installed a high security door. It's 5 inches thick with steel plates inside and has 3 separate sets of 3 locking rods like a bank vault. Not sure what line of work they were in but, really, good luck to the person who thinks they can break in here easily. Downside is there is no way to put a digital lock on the sucker.

I would be worrying about fire fighters won’t be able to enter my apt when they need to.

Firefighters train for exactly such scenarios and will happily go through a nearby wall. The cops struggle with armored doors, but the guys with axes don’t bother.

You want them to break in for insurance purposes though, it's a clear indication of unauthorized entry. Your policy should cover the door/window, but if your lock gets picked/bypassed you're going to have a rough time getting things covered.

Why would they need proof of forced entry? Is that seriously a thing where you are?

My smart lock doesn’t change the locking mechanisms. It’s basically a robot on the inside that turns the lock like you would. The only security issue would have to be software side, which a typical thief isn’t going to bother with especially since you cost tell from the outside that’s it’s not a normal lock - because it is.

August lock btw.

I agree that most thieves won't bother - but they do now have the additional option to hack it, making the lock less secure in total, not to mention the flawed mechanical design many of those smart locks have.

Yeah I’m just saying in my case they have no way of seeing that it’s a smart lock at all. The only smart part is an attachment on the interior side. So mechanically it’s 100% the same, and there is no visible indication that is “hackable,” even if it were. My door and it’s lock look as just like it did 15 years ago.

most of the smart locks that are supposed to be drop in replacements for traditional locks are mostly trash.

Personally been eyeing upgrading to UI’s access readers, but it lacks features like door unlock with Apple Homekey (for now anyways since it requires some specialty hardware). So been holding off.

This particular product is geared towards small business and large enterprises. But can be setup for home usage if you have to technical expertise.

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If there is no keyhole to pick then it is probably marginally more secure, but if a burglar wants to get into your home then no door lock is going to stop them. They could just break it or break your windows.

This is it. The weakest part of most doors is the door. A sledge hammer will go through a door or window regardless of the lock.

Smart locks are way more convenient and the ability to grant timed access and unique access controls probably makes them more secure.

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They could just break it or break your windows.

This is why you need backup measures. For example, if they break in through my windows, they'll be foiled by the micromachines I placed strategically on the floor. If they break through the door, they'll have to contend with the blowtorch I have rigged just inside the entryway. Always remember, "this is my house, I have to defend it."

What if you're in another city that your uncle happens to live in and his house is being renovated, would you still be able to defend it?

If they manage to get past that, you should attach a paint can to some rope and have it rigged to swing towards them if they are coming up the stairs.

Traps are technically illegal.

Just leave some Lego on the ground. Perfectly legal, yet instantly lethal to anyone who steps on it.

instantly lethal to anyone who steps on it

I like to pretend the afterlife is like a big AA meeting or group therapy session where people have conversations about how they died.

"So how did you die?"

"Oh, I broke into someone's house. The bastard left Legos everywhere. I tried my best to avoid them all, but it was so dark that I missed a dark blue 1x1 brick. It shattered every bone in my leg like tempered glass. The sudden collapse from pain and losing all structural integrity in my leg caused me to fall on the remaining Legos. A green plate sliced my jugular. The last thing I remember as things were going dark was a dark figure approaching. It was holding a Lego Millennium Falcon above its head as if it was going to throw it full-force against my skull. The next thing I knew, I was here."

I had a metal door and an iron gate inside with shitty locks. Burglers broke the locks and got in.

I replaced the door and got great locks. The locks held up fine but they broke the gate right out of the wall and got in.

If someone wants to get in, they will.

We have steel doors and protection metal bars in the windows in LATAM (yep, our houses are little fortress) and even that would not stop the most dedicated burglars...

You know, I feel cameras help even more, these scums get anxiety when they see cameras lol.

We have steel doors and protection metal bars in the windows in LATAM

Sounds a lot like Tucson...

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Against what sort of attack? Who's the attacker? What capabilities do they have? What do they want?


There's a saying, "locks are to keep your friends out." If someone really means you harm, a lock is not going to keep them out: they can smash a window, break down the door, or hit you with a rubber hose until you give them your keys or passwords. This applies no matter what kind of lock you have.

But a lock represents a social barrier: everyone knows that trying to defeat someone else's lock is a hostile act. The law recognizes this in many places: breaking-and-entering is a more severe crime than trespassing.

A lock may slow down an attacker. It may redirect an attacker to go after your neighbor's stuff instead of your stuff — but not if everyone has locks.


A password lock has some advantages over a key lock. You don't have to issue physical keys to everyone you want to allow in. Many allow you to create and revoke passwords separately — so you can grant a friend access to your house while you're away, and then revoke it when they no longer need it.

However, a password lock also has some disadvantages. If you give a password to one person, that person can easily give it to everyone. That's a lot harder with a physical key, because they'd have to go make a lot of copies of that key — which, if nothing else, costs money and time.

A computerized lock can create an audit trail: it can record when it was opened, and even which credentials (passwords, keys, ...) were used to unlock it.

Any lock can have vulnerabilities — most common key locks can be picked; computerized locks can be attacked through their computer hardware or software.

Thanks for reminding me of this XKCD gem!

https://xkcd.com/538/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubber-hose_cryptanalysis

In cryptography, rubber-hose cryptanalysis is a euphemism for the extraction of cryptographic secrets (e.g. the password to an encrypted file) from a person by coercion or torture—such as beating that person with a rubber hose, hence the name—in contrast to a mathematical or technical cryptanalytic attack.

There’s also just the social engineering side of it. I guessed my father’s door code just because I know his birthdate.

Beat me to it! Locks are just but one part of securing your home.

It is for a house in a residential area, and I don't keep a lot of valuables in the house. I wish I knew who the attacker would be, so I can catch them with pre-crime.

If you're concerned about burglars, one problem is that if they decide to hit your house, they can just break a window.

Where I live, burglars often hit cars rather than houses; and they're very willing to break windows to get in, especially if they see something valuable in the car. They spend no time trying to defeat the locks — hell, some don't even check if the car is locked. They're pros; they've practiced smashing a window and looting the car quickly.

A lot of the loss due to burglary is the damage the burglar does on the way in, rather than the value of the things stolen. And upgrading locks does nothing to reduce this.

Maybe instead of upgrading your locks, you might be better off spending the same amount of money upgrading your insurance?

Are you an insurance salesman? Because this script probably would have worked on me!

Here's a sillier economic take on it:

Locks should be difficult enough to break that if you can develop the skills to break them, you're smart enough to get a real job and not be a burglar.

Cars have historically been broken into and stolen a lot. Thus auto makers have put extra effort into good locks. Some hardware store deadbolts are so bad you anyone can pick them with lock picks - no instructions needed. Only the best deadbolts are equal what a car has. Likewise breaking a car window is typically harder than breaking a house window.

Likewise breaking a car window is typically harder than breaking a house window.

All it takes to break a car window is a single tap. There's specific tools available, or someone can just use a shard of ceramic. Shatters completely and instantly.

Right, if you have that tool. If you don't have that tool though a rock you find won't work unlike many house windows.

$10 on Amazon. Or just a piece of broken spark plug. Anyone who seriously wants to break a car window will have something handy.

Or maybe thieves are just walking down the street and see a fancy bag on a seat and a rock and just decide to do the deed on a whim and get foiled by tempered glass. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Shhh, most thieves don't know that and are taking cheap opportunity.

I love my August smart lock. It auto-unlocks my door when I get home, so I never need keys or to reach for my phone. It also has a key pad to unlock if I dont have my phone. It has alerts and reports status on an app. I can unlock or lock the door remotely for people to check in on things for me while Im away.

Yes, it has issues and eats batteries, but its so convenient.

If you're not in infosec you should be. (Source: am in infosec)

Oh, I did that for a while. 2001 was a mess of a year ... right after the planes started flying again after 9/11, the Nimda worm came out.

Yeah that was a rough time indeed. I recall getting hit with a couple of those big worms back to back.

2002 was a blur, and then in 2003 came SQL Slammer.

They have a regular backup cylinder that has all the vulnerabilities of a regular lock.

On top of that they have a bunch of electronics that can be vulnerable.

I can't see how it would be possible for them to be more secure unless you're someone who leaves their keys around a lot and a smart lock would let you not have a key on you.

They don't have to have a backup cylinder. The most common kind (Yale doorman) where I live doesn't have one. If the Internal battery goes out you can plug in a 9V battery from the outside to power it.

Even worse, quite often those backup locks are very cheap

Anything with added complexity will have a larger attack surface and more failure modes.

I have to disagree - this is more like the gate that blocks the sidewalk that you can get around by walking on the grass. The mechanical locks that these come with are significantly weaker, more common and better understood by thieves, that they wouldn't bother even trying to figure out how to hack the smart lock.

That doesn't invalidate their point. The electronic lock is just an additional potential point of failure with no added security. In addition to people who can pick or break the key lock, now there is an additional type of person who can break in: the kind that knows how to bypass electronic locks.

Same concept but why pick a lock when you can break a window or sliding glass door?

In other words... The attack surface is indeed larger for smart lock than dumb lock -- more ways to attack -- but in practice it matters little because existing home attack surface is easily breached.

PS the counter argument is smart locks come with added security controls: monitoring, logging, and the ability to auto lock in case someone forgets to lock it.

What would you recommend?

Honestly, the lock is one of the last things to worry about. If you have an outward opening door get security pins for your hinges.

Check out one of https://m.youtube.com/@DeviantOllam talk on door security and worry less about the lock and more about the door fixture. His hour long conference talks to through how a door is insecure how it can be exploited and what you can do to prevent it from happening.

Absolutely right! By far the majority of burglaries are with forced / destructive entry. Virtually all. That makes me think: if there is a "lockpicking lawyer" out there, what else lockpicking is there...?

Typically, external residential doors open inwards so that they can't be blocked by someone on the outside. Of course this doesn't apply if we're talking about an internal or non-residential door.

It is region specific as in my place 2 out of 3 of my external doors open outwards. my place before that was about 50:50 for outwards or inwards opening doors.

I'm not sure. Honestly, it was mostly observation, and not straight fact. Perhaps it just more common on more recent construction. I don't think I've ever been aware of an apartment or house door opening outward, except for screen doors on the outside of regular doors.

Trying to think through all doors of all places I have lived personally and I can not remember a single inward opening door in a house, cottage or apartment. I could very well be wrong but nothing comes to mind.

Based on the context, I think they would suggest going with the old school lock with a deadbolt. The more complex a device is, the more likely it is to have multiple vectors of attack.

Things might be different by now, but when I was researching this I decided on the Yale x Nest.

It's more secure than a keyed lock in the following ways:

  • Can't be picked (no physical keyhole).
  • Codes can be revoked or time-gated (for example, you can set the dog walker's code to work only at the time of day they're expected to come by).
  • Guest codes can be set to provide real-time notifications when used.
  • The lock keeps a detailed log of every time it's used.
  • The lock can be set to automatically lock the door after a certain amount of time.

It's less secure than a physical traditional lock in the following ways:

  • Compromise of a keycode isn't as obvious as losing a key, so you might not change a compromised keycode the same way you might change a lost key.
  • People can theoretically see a code being punched in, or intercept compromised communications to use it.
  • Compromised app or login could be used to assign new codes or remotely unlock

It's basically the same level of security in the following ways:

  • The deadbolt can still be defeated with the same physical weaknesses that a typical deadbolt has: blunt force, cutting with a saw, etc.
  • The windows and doors are probably just generally weak around your house, to where a determined burglar can get in no matter what lock you use.
  • Works like normal without power or network connection (just can't be remotely unlocked or reprogrammed to add/revoke codes if not online)

Overall, I'd say it's more secure against real-world risk, where the weakest link tends to be the people you share your keys with.

Some smart locks are vulnerable to being manipulated with a magnet, if they're poorly designed, since someone can just manipulate the motor from outside.

I've seen it for keypads that have to send a signal to an actuator located elsewhere, but I think the typical in-door deadbolt (where the keypad is mere millimeters from the motor itself) wouldn't have the form factor leaving the connection as exposed to a magnet inducing a current that would actually actuate the motor.

Most of LPL's videos on smart locks just defeat the mechanical backup cylinder, anyway. I'd love to see him take on the specific Yale x Nest model I have, though.

But since smart locks generally also have a traditional mechanical mechanism for backup, aren't they inherently always less secure than a traditional lock since you can find the weakest link in either of the two mechanisms?

Usually yes, but this person is saying theirs does not have a physical keyhole.

Yup. The backup for battery failure on this model is that the bottom of the plate can accept power from the pins of a 9V battery, held there just long enough to punch in the code.

Thieves don't pick locks or hack them. You mostly want to protect against brute force.

A lock is never weaker than a window. If someone wants in your house, there are ways that don't have anything to do with your locks. Locks of any quality largely work by deterrence, rather than actual pickability or durability. If I have to literally break something to get in, I'm drawing attention to myself and immediately putting a count down on my robbery before a cop shows up or witnesses get a better look at me, my vehicle, etc. So it's already not worth it for most petty thieves.

when some thieves broke into my neighbors house they first rang the door bell a few times to make sure no one was home, after that they hopped the fence and went window to window until they found one that was unlocked and went in that way

This could go badly for would-be thieves, I usually don't answer the door if I'm naked, lol. Hopefully, they like gay shit when they break in. ✨️

Haha the dudes that broke in left a big knife on their pillow too not sure if they actually would have used it or was just as a scare tactic, they were like two high school aged dudes that most likely were the kids who lived across the street

A broken window is clear indication of theft for insurance purposes. If your lock gets picked, you might be fucked depending on how your policy is written.

I worked for a company that designed home security devices for a few years.. Pretty much everyone i talked to agreed there is only 1 actually good security device that is an effective deterrent. Its called "Large Scary Dog". Every other device is there just to notify you that all your shit is soon to be or already gone.

On the other hand, these digital locks, while not any safer, are much more convenient. I am all in on not having to carry keys and instead have a code to enter or some other easy access.

Most dogs are fine if you just carry treats and act polite. I've seen plenty of dogs just let intruders in because they were kind to them.

Ive always wondered what happens if the battery dies, do you still need to carry a key in case that happens

Usually there is a warning that the battery is dying well ahead of it actually being dead. One that can send notifications will ping your phone with a low battery message. Others have audible warnings. You unlock it and then it starts beeping at you. It keeps doing that until you either change the batteries or it eventually dies. But you have to do a lot of ignoring for it to die on you. Many do have key backups too though. Just in case

A few have external terminals to charge them when they die.

I have a 9v battery stashed in a flower pot next to my door for when it happens.

I hope there is a replacement replacement. Life deserves recursion.

There are ones like August that only add the smart lock on one side and retain the old hardware on the outside. If the battery runs out you just gotta use your key like a plebian. It warns you ahead of time it's low though and I've never had it fail in the half decade I've had it.

Every one of the locks pictured have a traditional lock as a backup. Therefore, none of those smartlocks could ever be more secure. Even if the smart parts were 100% flawless, the lock will have all the weaknesses of a traditional door lock because one is included as a backup.

If you were to spend an equal cost on a lock, you will get more security from the traditional lock because all the budget can be spent on the lock instead of split between the lock and the electronics.

But how valuable is the security of the lock anyway? The weakest part of your home is the windows. If someone wanted to break into your house they can break your windows and climb through regardless what lock you have on the front door.

There is a movie from 1992 with Robert Redford, "Sneakers". It is about a team of hackers, in a scene they face a door with an unexpected smart lock and find the right strategy, just kick the f* door.

But how valuable is the security of the lock anyway? The weakest part of your home is the windows. If someone wanted to break into your house they can break your windows and climb through regardless what lock you have on the front door.

Not so much in many apartments.

Generally not allowed to change the locks in an apartment anyways

Condos are a thing.

At least where I live condos and apartments aren't treated as interchangeable terminology.

Eg if you check on Zillow

What are you talking about "every lock pictured"? There are two pictured that are a keypad and a 9-volt battery terminal.

Ask the lockpicking lawyer. He regularly opens them on YouTube. On the other hand, he opens about anything. But those "smart" locks usually have additional weaknesses.

It's why I went with an inside only smart lock (I have an August that's been running like a champ for half a decade). A door lock is a deterrent in the first place, and I don't expect it to ever stop someone sufficiently motivated. Hell, I broke through an exterior door by accident when I was a young teen - haven't trusted them since.

However, if some cheat came out (like some of LPL's "just hold a powerful magnet" locks) I'd rather not have an obvious smart lock that can be picked out from the street.

Yep. As soon as you consider a lock, look up whether the LPL had it done, and how he rated it.

A smart lock with a keyhole is never going to be more secure than a standard key lock as it is a standard key lock. Now that being said if the door will let you know every time its opened you could possibly head something off

I got a smart lock after realizing that we would simply forget to lock the front door sometimes since we typically leave via the garage. It's connected to Home Assistant and now will lock automatically if no one is home.

Technically, I know that a smart lock is less secure, but in most real world scenarios, knowing that the lock will be locked when we are not home, on top of being notified if it becomes unlocked, I'd argue that it's more secure now than when I had a dumb lock.

I know it sounds crazy but what I would really like is a smart lock built into the wall and wired up to electric and the bolt would go into a hollow in the door. Sorta reverse of a standard door lock. Problem is since its not standard it would be way more expensive. Its like something I would do if I was rich enough for money to not be an issue.

Far too many smart locks that are connected to a deadbolt use an actuator which can be tripped with a powerful magnet. No way would I trust them.

The LPL would have had to test them for me to trust them.

Same. If LPL can't pick it, it's godly lock

Doesn’t he pick every lock that he gets though?

I saw at least one where he couldn't pick it, everyone in the comments was in shock

I musta missed that one somehow.

Still, I take him at his word that he makes it look much much easier than it is. And have bought a couple of locks based on his contentment with the quality and pick resistance.

What I have already works. I added a few security pins and my door will likely be broken before someone picks it. Insurance company will understand if I someone broke something to get in, which is why I'm not entirely made at kwikset.

Why add more points of potential failure? I'm more concerned someone can get in without me knowing they had.

I haven't done a breakdown on smartlocks. I do work with machine locks, you know for safeties. We can make them pretty freaken hard to bypass, but I can.

Any person that specializes in IT will know that most of these smart locks/security measures are bullshit and traditional methods are much better.

Let's be frank, traditional locks exist to keep honest people honest. It's trivial to learn how to pick locks, there are YouTube channels dedicated to exactly that, and the tools can be purchased for very little upfront cash.

There is no such thing as a foolproof unpickable locks. Any lock that is designed to be opened will have vulnerabilities associated with it that can be exploited by somebody who knows how.

That said, smart locks are probably not much worse off in that regard. I think you can still use a manual key with some models, so that's not really adding security, but rather convenience. For the ones that are 100% digital, the issue is just shifted to technical knowledge of the lock software and not the mechanical workings.

I'd say they aren't any more or less secure, just another option that a determined thief can get past, either through skill or brute force if necessary.

There is at least the possibility to get a good traditional lock that is trusted by organisations that value security and has the interest in getting security solutions that genuinely defeat intrusion.

Anyways, the general idea should be to have a house lock that is better than your neighbors, and that is sufficient for most purposes.

I'd say the main purpose of any kind of lock (meaning the weakest link all around your house - strong front door won't help if the kitchen door to the patio is always unlocked) is to be less appealing to burglars than the next house. At least that is how it works in Germany: Burglars drive around in vans, typically in daylight, sometimes walk around houses, looking for opportunities. If they see a cracked window, or an easy to access balcony door without too much exposure, they'll give it a go. If that balcony door (I lived in a flat with that setting) has a big iron grating installed in front of it, they'll move on and look for another place to rob, not because they couldn't maybe find out that the iron grating is not attached very well, but because it looks like too much effort to even invest the time to find out.

I know smartlocks have had their share of vulerabilities. I remember 3 or 4 years ago hearing about things such as sending codes un-encrypted over wifi or basing their security on MAC addresses alone. Both are practically a 'key on top of the doormat' travesty. THis may have got better. I think the issue is that manufacturers jump at a market without having much knowledge of IT security. Similar to whats happening with the connectivity of cars. The fact that most peeps in IT security(ok, they might lean towards the paranoid) will not have a smart lock on their house is enough for me for the time being.

Definitely less secure, but way more convenient. Security for residential door locks doesn’t really matter that much though; thieves are unlikely to try to pick your lock or use some smart-device exploit to access your home - they’ll just smash a window.

Security 101 : If it's convinient for you, it's convinient for the attacker as well.

Agreed, most of home security is to try and make your neighbours a more tempting target than you. The ethical choice is to do it by making your home a bit more difficult to break into though I guess you could "debuff" the neighbours as well 😉

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A dog with a loud bark will always be more effective than any lock or security system. My border collie is a super lovable dog but her bark is designed to scare off wolves. It's sounds mean and scary. Truly one whose bark is worse than the bite. She hasn't ever bit a human but she pinned a pit bull that challenged her and gave him a bite to remember.

My late father would say "A lock only keeps an honest man honest".

If a criminal really wants to break in, they'll find a way...

Edit: Meant to post that as a top level comment, but whatever LOL!

I feel sorry for my neighbor who has to repeat whatever phrase his smartlock accepts over and over while being locked out of his house.

I got a lock pick set and was pretty happy learning how to pick all the locks in my house. So I ran out to a hardware store to buy more padlocks and some other stuff. Come in the house and noticed I left the bag of padlocks I bought in my car. Go out to my car and noticed I forgot my keys. Head back and my door is locked. Locked out of my house and car. Through the window I can see my lock picking set on the kitchen table, mocking me.

I have decided to never share this story with my wife.

I pick locks as a hobby. Your door lock is almost never the point of attack. It's way easier to break the door or windows. Only time picking would be useful is if you need to conceal that you've entered, which burglars don't typically care about.

So, disregarding physical brute force (because that lock bypass method will never change), let's say a smart lock today is functionally equivalent to a traditional lock in terms of security. How's that smart lock going to look in 5 years? In 10? When is the manufacturer going to abandon the product and stop providing security updates? It's only a matter of time before whatever firmware it shipped with becomes obsolete. And then it's just one more thing on the list of pwnd devices that unscrupulous actors can access at will. Your friendly neighborhood junkie in search of quick cash might not know the difference, but a list of people that have e-Lock v2.2 would be very lucrative to the types of people that run the current smash and grab operations.

Soft/firmware obsolescence is a thing with any "smart" device, but it becomes especially egregious when it's built into what are traditionally durable devices like appliances. And even more so when it's something embedded, like a lock, outlet, etc. It becomes "replace that light fixture, or leave that vulnerability on the network." A lock takes that from "someone can waltz into my home network" to "someone can waltz through my front door."

Don't let it use the manufacturer's cloud service, but use your own local server (like Home Assistant) accessible only through VPN (Wireguard, Tailscale), keep your home router up to date. This alone eliminates the largest attack surfaces and offers way more privacy.

if someone wants in, a lock wont even slow them down. check out lock-picking lawyer

Burglars won't pick locks, though. Breaking the door, door fixture or the window next to the door is much faster, easier and requires very little skill.

Lots do, less common with more modern locks, but a bump key is a very quick fast way to try and get in.

I doubt it. Bump key requires a tool and a skill. The bar is not high but there is one. My understanding is most burglaries are impulse or opportunity. Is something open or unlocked? Can I break it with my boot or a nearby rock?

Doubt what? A proven issue?

A bump key requires zero skill and a set of 10 will net you around 90% of current doors. And skill? It’s a 30 second video to watch, if you even need it. You push the key in and turn at the same time. If it works it works, if it doesn’t you move on. Even a trained professional can’t get into every single door, it’s about ease. If it doesn’t work, they move on.

I doubt it’s used frequently to break and enter. Burglaries are much more opportunistic

It’s used very frequently…. It’s hard to track though since it leaves no trace if done right. Most people would just think they left their door unlocked.

But of course very few people are going to admit that either.

I seriously don’t know why I’m arguing with you or why you think that your opinion matters.

It’s a known issue, simple as that. They are illegal to own without a locksmith license for these things exact reasons.

Ignore facts if you want mate.

My opinion doesn’t matter as yours doesnt, just actual facts.

I didn’t spend enough time finding data but this is representative of data I’ve read

https://www.adt.com/resources/how-do-burglars-break-into-houses

Edit to add: here’s an article from “Bump Key and Lock Picking News”

https://www.ukbumpkeys.com/blogs/news/how-safe-is-your-home-i-ask-a-thief

He bought lockpicks…. Not a bump key…. Said that they couldn’t use it to pick their nose…. And it’s one persons opinion…. Lord have mercy.

They work, and if you use the right terms you’ll find plenty of supporting evidence.

Try using bumpkey instead of lockpicks for starters……

I never disagreed with whether bump keys could be used, just whether they are.

There are lots of ways you can get sophisticated to break into pretty much any home, to get around various security doors, locks, alarms, dogs, cameras: a homeowner can never keep out a determined sophisticated burglar. I’m arguing that those are extremely rare and would need sufficient payoff, so it’s also not worth worrying about for most of us.

The bar might be low on using a bump key, and I do see plenty of scare stories in the media about how available they are, but none that I read ventured to say how frequently they’re actually used.

However actual crime stats continue to say you need to worry about the basics, and bump keys are either not mentioned as a frequently used tool or are not frequently used. I’m not claiming my house is secure against them; it’s not. I’m saying that if I get burgled, it’s much more likely there was a door open, or a door kicked in, or a window broken. The cause will be the blinking lights visible through the windows indicating potentially valuable electronics, and it will likely be a smash and grab. No bump key involved, no finesse of any kind

LPL is quite a bit better than your average thief though, and if you attract enough attention to have this kind of expertise thrown at you, you need to worry more than just locks.

It depends on your threat vector. In the academic sense they're less secure but if you often loan out keys they're more secure because you don't have to give someone the key. If you often forget to lock the door they're more secure because you can do it remotely.

Or if you have kids they can't lose their keys if they just have a pin. And that pin can be changed if they tell it to someone.

From what I've seen? Considerably less secure.

Many of them feature a normal pin-tumbler lock cylinder as a backup in case the electronics fail, and best case scenario it's going to be as mediocre as any old Kwikset hanging on the peg on the comedy aisle at Lowe's. So you're probably still vulnerable to key theft, key duplication, picking, combing, raking, jiggling, etc.

Then there's the electronics. A surprising number of them rely on either a solenoid to directly operate the latch/bolt, or a relay that energizes a motor to do the same, both of these are vulnerable to attacks by magnets. A stupid number of them are vulnerable to disassembly attacks. There are trace evidence attacks such as looking at the keypad and noticing where all the fingerprints are, there's just watching you dial the combination...

And the smart phone app driven ones...sure, let's send a signal that means "I just got home" across the internet. That sounds safe.

"The weakest part of the door is the window (next to it)"
"You don't need a key when you have a brick"

I put that 3M film on all my accessible windows and doors. It takes 3-4 hits with a sledge to get through. Thieves don't come prepaired for that and even if they are, the alarm would go off on the first hit. It's also a very loud noise and an extra minute of smashing on a populated downtown street. Well worth the extra cost.

Fun fact, broken windows very rarely alert neighbors to a burglary. They’re not terrible at alerting the home owner, but unless a neighbor connects a second, overtly thievish sound to the crack of broken glass, they will usually go about their day. It’s not even the bystander effect, most people just don’t know what a burglary sounds like.

In my case, definitely more secure. If I'd given my kids a key, my ex was likely to copy it without my knowledge. With a code, I could tell them to go ahead and give him the code if he pressured them, then just change it.

And I still have a non-electronic deadbolt.

Researched a bit into this some time back and I was not convinced.

It would be nice to have a lock I could assign entry codes for different users and still have a physical key as an emergency backup but the obcession with these locks being tied to an app and/or internet discouraged me.

I stayed with purely mechanical locks with complex keys and secondary arms that make the task to break down a door much harder.

Don't know how it is in other countries but I've been to shops where I specifically asked for locks that would give a locksmith a bad time to pick and was shown a few models where the only way to break it was to put a whole cutter to it and cut out the entire drum.

My door lock is a smart lock but I disabled all ability to unlock it remotely with an air gap. It gives me the ability to use the keypad to lock/unlock without any security holes added.

My smart home system knows it's state too, so I can have it make a chime or alarm if the door is unlocked at certain times. Great for alerting us that our toddler is playing with the door again.

One thing people aren’t considering is that if we assume that it’s relatively trivial to bypass either a classic lock or a smart lock, only one of the two is likely to give your phone a notification that it’s been opened in your absence.

Do they have a small battery? Because it is a common practice to cut down electricity when someone intends to break in your house, even with that backup source of power I guess the lack of electricity would mean no Internet anyway.

Mine runs on 4x AA batteries, which lasts a very long time. On the order of a year. Cutting electricity would indeed prevent the notification, but a dumb lock couldn’t send one even with all the power in the world.

Plus, in a shared apartment/condo building the power is much less likely to be cut and in a freestanding home one could theoretically put their network on a UPS so any notifications would still go out.

freestanding home one could theoretically put their network on a UPS so any notifications would still go out.

I have a UPS attached to my Synology NAS, and every time the unit is triggered it sends a notification (kinda, now that I think about it, how is it sent if no power electricity 🤔) so the NAS advises me that can't ping to Synology after several minutes, is that what you mean?

I mean that if you have a cable modem and wireless router on a UPS, your internet should stay up unless the burglar also cuts the cable (much less likely).

Ahh yeah, that was me overthinking, pretty neat simple solution I have been wanting to do that since forever, hopefully a robber won't be the cause of me finally doing it 😅

Haha yeah, the whole thing is a risk calculation that you can take all the way down the rabbit hole. But having network on UPS has other uses too, at least.

I have a smart lock and tbh hate it. I’m not sure the security difference, but it’s more inconvenient than a key, takes longer, needs me to pull out my phone, open an app and then I can unlock my front door.

Unfortunately getting away from them in moderately upscale apartments is getting harder and harder.

I absolutely love my smart lock. It has auto-unlock when I arrive home after leaving the neighborhood, so I never have to use a key or a phone app. It also has a key pad, so if my phone is not on me or is dead or whatever I can still punch in a code. And I can both check the lock status AND door open status anywhere I am in the world if I have wifi or cell data. I can remotely unlock the door to let in my housekeeper if I am at the office without giving her a code. I can also lock it when she leaves.

That’s a much more fancy one than mine then. The only feature I have is remote unlocking. Nothing else you mentioned is a feature of mine, so that may make sense why I dislike them.

I’m not even able to lock my door remotely, let alone check status or if it’s open. The only way to lock the door is physically using the deadbolt from the inside, the app offers no way to do it.

Ahh, yeah, I can see how that would be annoying.

Yeah, it’s not great. The door had a keyhole so when I signed the lease I was really expecting to be given a physical key to unlock the door, but they wouldn’t even give us those.

A fully featured lock might be worth it, but with the one I have now it’s not great.

I have an august lock that has auto unlock but the Bluetooth radio is so weak it never unlocks. I usually use Siri on my watch to lock/unlock. Next place hopefully I can get one of those homekey tap to unlock ones.

I hope you didn't pay much for your lock if you can't even lock it with the app, that's a huge deal breaker. I don't remember the last time I used a key.

I live in an apartment building, so I had no choice in the lock, but also didn’t pay for it.

Never tried Siri for it, but I also have Siri disabled on my phone. The watch app is a PoS with this and doesn’t work unless you open the app on the phone too.

I’m sure there’s better options out there, and my sample does seem to be a pretty low quality one, but I just don’t really find a need for one. I’d much rather have a physical key tbh. I’ve almost been locked out because I don’t always take my phone when running the trash out and I’ve bumped the front of the lock with my back and it auto locks me out.

Well than that’s a proprietary lock, I don’t think that falls under the umbrella of “smart”.

If it’s internet connected it’s considered a smart lock imo. I’m not sure what distinction you’re trying to make.

Anything that requires the use of my phone for something that could be done just as well with a physical item is a bad product imo. I don’t read on my phone, I don’t ever want my phone to be my car key, I don’t like having smart devices in my home.

It's important to remember that no lock is entirely unpickable. It's just a matter of time, skill, tools, and know-how. Generally speaking, if someone is willing to pick a lock, they will be able to pick your lock eventually.

But arguably even more importantly, most people do not possess the skill, tools or know-how to pick a lock and will not try. So you get the same benefit from just about ANY lock for the vast majority of people that might break into your home, in that any functioning lock will deter them equally.

Also, even if you have the most secure door locks known to man, even if they are literally unpickable, that will not keep motivated people from entering your home through other means. Having a perfectly secure lock just means that it become preferable for them to break in through a window, by literally breaking in a door, by your crawlspace/basement access, etc. They could also catch you outside the home and use you to gain access by threat, trickery or theft of your keys.

So, to me, even if a smart lock is less secure than a standard lock they are both going to act as sufficient deterrence for most situations and the tangential benefits of a smart lock can be worth the marginal loss of security. But that's a choice you have to make for yourself.

Edit: Also, some features can make smart locks massively more beneficial to addressing a break in attempt even while being easier to actually break in. For example, there are can be some secret distress features, like a alert combination that unlocks the door but also secretly alerts the police of a break in. Or notifications that alert you that the door was unlocked even when you aren't home. Smart locks come with vulnerabilities, yes. But also unique features that you can't get with conventional locks.

This is the real answer. Everyone has a hard on for a secure lock, when a thief is just going to break a window.

Consider your actual threat model. You don't have the LPL trying to get into your house.

Both at the same time. Different attack vectors

Check the YouTube channel 'the lockpicking lawyer". He picks locks, both mechanical and electrical. His typical videos don't take more than 2-3 minute because that's all he needs to pick a lock multiple times. Electrical locks usually are opened with a paperclip or something similar. Wat too many locks are designed and built by idiots who have no idea about security

I wish that he would try his hand on a lock from Yale. Considering that they are part of Assa Abloy who are very well respected in the lock business. My suspicion is that a company who are mainly makers of mechanical locks at least won't fall prey for the many of the beginners mistakes lockpicking lawyer points out.

If the door is made of cardboard as most us's one are u better get the cheapest one it won't make a difference.... look at an European door if u don't now what I mean...

It's more secure as in I can't forget to not lock the door, since it auto-locks. Also I can't lock myself out of the house if I leave my keys inside, which I have done in the past lol. As the other nerds in here have said, it probably won't keep you any safer against people breaking in though, but I think of it in terms of convenience.

If you need electricity to operate your locks, a power failure is the difference between you sleeping on your front porch, or burglars having a key to your house.

No house lock goes from locked to unlocked if you cut power to the house. What the hell are you talking about? They're battery powered and nearly every single one of them still uses a key from the outside as a manual override.

You're not wrong in spirit but yeah... they're battery operated.

How bad some of the "secure" backup locks are or the failsafe mechanics of those or even just the software of not even cheap products are most of the time real bad and just adds more fail points.

I have august door locks, from the outside you wouldnt know its there. They eat up batteries frequently.

Much less secure, but most of either regular or smart locks are security theater anyways.

ssh me@home3

me@home3 // : sh ./scripts/unlock_deadbolt.sh

*click*

me@home3 // : exit

Conveniently skip the password prompt? At least show us the steps on how to bypass or crack the password.

More ways to open is leds secure than leds ways to open. That said if you have an unsecured window, then that is the weakest link of the chain.

well, what do you do if it runs out of battery? electric locks really only make sense on gates and doors in apartment blocks, where it's okay to have it just default to open in case of failure.

Depends. Any modern lock can easily be picked with something called a comb, which can bypass all the pins by pushing them far up into the lock so it can turn. However, the position on the security of pin pads is debatable. Regardless of which is better, both can easily be bypassed with a drill, so I guess neither.

Every house has a window to break, door locks are an illusion of security.

The reason why people even pick locks to get in homes is because it's most of the time silent to pick a lock. Do you think someone would just choose to pick the lock instead of breaking the window if noise wasn't a concern? Though I guess there are silent glass cutters too.

Only cheap locks with a huge design flaw can be picked using a comb. The lock picking lawyer explains in many videos, how this is a very old exploit and easily can be defended against.

However, locks like that sadly still exist. So it is important to choose a reputable manufacturer - be it for classic locks or digital ones. However I will say, that digital locks usually have a classical backup. So that gives an attacker just one mor option to defeat the lock.