I’m looking into installing a door lock w/ key pad at home for two use cases:
- I’m out of town and need to allow someone to enter my home, in an emergency or for any reason.
- Nice to have - “oh shit, did I lock the door” - ability to lock the door remotely from my phone, would also solve use case #1 by unlocking remotely.
If there are no privacy respecting / self hosted apps for remote control (use case #2), then a “dumb” electronic lock w/ key pad that enables me to set a PIN that I can give to a friend or neighbor in a pinch and then reset the PIN after I get home, that would be good enough. If no such keypad/electronic locks exist, then my backup plan is to just make a few copies of my key for trusted friends & family and/or hide a key, but I’d like to explore the keypad route.
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The comments are funny… I run Home Assistant (using ZigBee, so devices have no Internet connectivity) at home but I also lock pick, for fun.
Sure, your “smart” or “connected” gadgets can be hacked but don’t get fooled by believing your “dumb” locks are safe!
As somebody pointed out check the LockPickingLawyer… but if you believe it’s complicated buy yourself a lock-picking training kit for 30€. Sure you won’t open “fancy” locks easily but you can open a lot of locks by training for like 1h. Get a kit, watch few videos, train while paying attention, repeat while watching a movie (basically blind picking) and you’ll get surprised how quickly it comes. If you have very fancy lock (the ones that cost more than 200€) then you need better tooling, like 1000€ automated ones, but that still requires little skill and need a minute to pop a lock (so I heard, this I never tried).
So yes, please, do NOT buy a connected lock if you believe that’s unsafe BUT also do not imagine you are safer with a “traditional” cheap one.
PS: full disclosure, I do not have a connected lock but it’s not because I think they are more unsafe, just because I didn’t bother. I’m not convinced of the utility for the price. That said if you have suggestions, I’m all ears.
PS2: as with similar questions on software, depends on your thread model. If you have to deter playful teenagers or drunkards, sure, it’ll hopefully slow them down enough so that they give up. If you are facing professionals it won’t matter either way, safer to get insurance for the outcome.
Much like securing your network and devices, unfortunately, there isn’t anything that renders 100% protection. I’m fond of saying ‘For each and every technology, there exists, or is soon to exist, an equal, yet undoing technology.’ Technology doesn’t stand still, but it always wields a double edged sword.
Indeed, and that’s why I enjoy lock picking. You get to actually understand the technology and its limits. It’s a playful pastime but IMHO it’s an interesting reminder.
That being said… I do believe 1 protection exist and is close to 100% : computational complexity. The math behind encryption is the closest we have to a perfect lock. The fact that governments have to put artificial limits on it says a lot.