Slashdot Mirror
Steel Bolt Hacking
The beginning of the book discusses the origins of lock-picking sporting groups, crews in the U.S and Europe, competition around the country, and how to become a part of a lock-picking group. One of the groups out of Colorado Springs, DC719, are a bunch of computer geeks that have taken up the art of lock picking and sponsor a lock-picking contest every year at DefCon. According to Mr. Chick, computer people are the fastest group to pick up the art of lock picking. (I must warn you though, there are also a lot of disclaimers about the author not being responsible for the misuses of the information contained in this book.)
The book is fully illustrated with pictures of different types of lock picking instruments, tools to make your own picks as well as padlocks, deadbolt, and combination locks. There are pictures of locks that have been cut open and even how to crack push-button combination locks. (You know, the kind you find on the door to a server room.) I have to say, for a little book, (114 pages) it is brimming with valuable information for a beginner. What I didn't realize was that software isn't the only thing that has security vulnerabilities; mechanical things like padlocks and deadbolts do as well. What was scary to learn is how easy cheap locks can be picked, and that 80 percent of all locks used are cheap locks. Expensive locks are just likely to take a little longer.
I liked that the book didn't exaggerate. It didn't tell me that I was going to be a master lock picker after only a few tries. It took a little time, practice and sore fingers, but after a couple weeks of practice, I could pick every lock in my house. And as a computer person, I liked all of the jargon that was used to explain locksmith techniques. There was also enough humor to keep the book interesting; it's difficult to read any type of textbook and still maintain a reasonable interest. The illustrations are good and there is a resource section to purchase the tools you need from the Internet.
What I didn't like about the book: The most annoying point, I felt, is the considerable redundancy in methods between different types of locks to be picked. Also, the book suggests that there might be a lock-picking group in every city in the U.S., when in fact I am having a difficult time finding one in my are. And I live near D.C. -- You'd think there would be one on every corner around here. I think that the sport is still in its infancy and Mr. Chick is hoping his book will draw more people to it. The author put his e-mail address on the back of the book. He hasn't responded to my e-mail yet, but I suppose that he's probably a busy man.
All in all, I found the book informative, entertaining and worth the purchase price of 19.99.
You can purchase Steel Bolt Hacking from bn.com. Slashdot welcomes readers' book reviews -- to see your own review here, read the book review guidelines, then visit the submission page.
Some other interesting discussion. Small wonder I scarcely let my racing bike out of my sight.
"may I borrow your pen? I need to pick up some transportation."
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Erick
http://www.busyweather.com/
I first read about serious lock hacking in the book Hackers by Steven Levy. The early hackers at MIT were notorious for hacking locks on office doors, toolboxes, safes, etc. to get to tools and information.
Lockpicking and an interest in computers seem to go hand in hand. A number of the people in my college are seen practicing picking locks during boring lectures.
One guy picked the lock on a projector and cabled another person to the projector cart
No, he just lost his password for checking his email.
You know what?
quicktime movie of the same.
-knowles
In DC, basic possession of lockpicking instruments is illegal, unless you are a licensed locksmith. You don't have to prove intent. This is the same in many other states. Be careful and don't do anything stupid.
... but I locked my copy in my dad's safe and now I can't remember the combination.
It was on a removable HD tray that jammed, but the story's better when I leave that part out.
You believe me, right? I posted it on slashdot!
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Like computer hacking, the primary value to most people is not learning how to hack, but learning how to make things more hack-proof.
So does this book have any recommendations along those lines? What door locks, deadbolts, padlocks, bike locks, etc, follow the locksmith version of "best security practices"?
That, IMHO, is the REALLY important thing to discuss!
What? do you go to Home Depot to practice?
Everyone in the room goes "Ooooo! how did you do that? Are you really that good?" And he had the presence of mind to say, "Yes." =)
"A witty saying proves nothing." ~Voltaire
"d'Oh!" ~Homer
If you're interested in learning a bit about lock picking, but aren't sure you want to spend $20 on this book yet, take a look at this article at Howstuffworks.com.
It offers a great introduction to lock picking, and has some nice graphics that really helped me understand how locks work, and how they can be circumvented. If you really get into it, then I'm sure this book would offer a lot more information to help you along.
I've found over the years, simply being self-taught, that there are very few locks I can't get into using stuff I carry on me or stuff that's easy to find (leatherman tool, paperclip, sewing needle, whatever.)
There's a much larger number of locks that I can't get into without making it patently obvious somebody broke in. This is something I haven't been as successful in teaching myself.
The former is engineering. The latter, that's art.
-JDF
the easiest way to break in is to crawl through a window.
At work we have 4 of those 8' tall cabinets with the small keys and cheap locks. My building has 80 people working in it, so it was a pain when someone used the cabinet and ran off with the key. Who could it be? I told them I could knew how to pick locks. Really I meant that I saw a tutorial on howstuffworks.com about 6 months ago. I was talking out my ass but gave it a shot anyway. In about 2 minutes I had picked their crappy lock and we could tell who took the key by the stuff that was in the cabinet. Everyone in my office kept saying "I don't want to know what you did before you worked here." I tried to keep my "skills" quiet though. Didn't want people looking to me when stuff went missing.
So now you're telling me that Douglas Chick is the master of unlocking? Well, Barry Burton told me that Jill Valentine was...
I myself enjoy lock picking... sounds like yet another thing which will soon be illegal even to talk about...
I used to sit in study hall and pick my old gym lock (it had the keyhole on the back for teachers) by the end of the year I could pick any gym lock in about 10 seconds flat. Although I have ethics and never did anything with that talent, I will always be interested in something like this
Sometimes the majority just means all the morons are on the same side.
I had a job once where they gave me a desk and a chair with a pair of handcuffs locked to it. Apparently, they had to literally chain the last guy to the chair to get any work out of him but they had long since lost the key.
I had nothing to do for a day or two so, using a paperclip, I was able to master the technique of unlocking it.
Now if I ever get arrested and handcuffed (and happen to have a paperclip in my hand) I'll be ready.
The Truth About Slashdot
Locks just like security fixes and such only make it more difficult for someone to break in. We've covered the kensington lock vulnerability before here: http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=04/08/09/021822 5&tid=172&tid=184&tid=1
Ultimately everything is hackable, hard and software, by those who have too much time and a little knowhow.
It just sure is nice to be one of those people.
Wait until the streep sweeper comes by and follow it down the street. The bristles are spring steel that is perfect for lock picks. They fall off, just pick them up off the street.
I've never made a set of picks so I don't know if this is true or not, but there was a decent lock picking culture at MIT in the late 70s.
Pick up a copy of "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!"
It's a good quick ready and talks about his lock picking and safe cracking while working on the Manhattan projcet at Los Alamos.
Or read about it here
www.bannination.com Two things float to the top he
For locks like a Medaco lock - in which the tumblers have to be rotated to a certain angle (usually 15 deg increments) as well as lifted to a certain height - AFAIK there are no tools out there that can pick that. However, even the strongest locks uses brass for the tumblers (Medacos are no exception - at least the one that I opened up to play with :) ).
... I could probably have opened the door with just a screwdriver after the tumblers are dissolved.
Brass is primarily a copper alloy. It is extremely reactive in the presence of strong acids. A few years back, a friend of mine wanted to look at a smart card under a microscope - just curious, that's all. I was working in a research lab then, and I mixed hydrochloric acid with nitric acid to make aqua regia. We were able to dissolve the GOLD contacts off the smart card to expose the chip underneath. (Aqua regia is used for lot assay analysis of alloys to determine alloy composition - you start by dissolving the metal, then feed it through some form of spectroscopy machine to measure the quantity and the composition of the metal). If I had squirted that into the door lock and held it in place with some bubble gum
- SK
At least here in Finland practically all locks seem to be Abloy.. (well, except for cars, bicycles etc)
the link at BN says they are all out...
...the 'printable' version of the article.
now that every computer related device gets Quantum-Encrypted, let's just screw that, time to get back to basics for some fun.
I can't wait to pick the lock of some super secret satellite, yeah, right up there.
That will be a joyride.
This is the guide we learnt from back in about 1994. We downloaded a .ps of it from the web. You can Google for it, and it's available in HTML form now.
When my father died, he left some important papers in a locked drawer in his file cabinet. The key was nowhere to be found. But the drawer above it had no lock. I just removed that one.
Older Steelcase desks with a center drawer actuated locking mechanism could be opened (well, except for the center drawer itself) by just reaching behind that drawer and lifting up the lever that locked all the others.
I'm suprised no one has linked to the (in)famous MIT Guide to Lockpicking yet.
Why is it that the proponents of "one nation under God" are so eager to get rid of "liberty and justice for all"?
Speaking of MIT, why hasn't anyone mentioned the MIT lock picking guide ?
... http://www.cia.gov/
Just another day in Paradise
I always love watching people secure their Clubs to their steering wheels and feel so secure. What has happened is thieves bypass the Club and hacksaw the steering wheel itself. Steering wheel broken, slide Club through hole, no more club!!
I used to make keys to the school locks from those street-sweeper bristles. I'd fold them over to match the lock, use wire to hold them in place, and file notches in them to match the keys.
Of course, I also used them for my picks. They are great for the tension wrenches. I still have some I made at least 30 years ago.
...but Amazon does.
9 74 463019/qid=1095277034/sr=1-5/ref=sr_1_5/002-729179 8-4311214?v=glance&s=books
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0
We must be alert to the danger that public policy could become captive to a scientific-technological elite. - Eisenhower
MIT Guide to Lockpicking - Fairly thorough guide on lockpicking.
Break the mindless monotony!
.:
Funky-type pdf
http://www.lysator.liu.se/mit-guide/MITLock Guide.pdf
~!-xor
http://www.lysator.liu.se/m it-guide/MITLockGuide.ps
:.
A shot of Freon or R-12 will freeze the lock components to the point that they will shatter when struck with a pointed chisel and hammer. The only problem with that is that you've just left evidence. With a precise picking, the point of entry is hard to determine.
Slashdot is proof that Sturgeon's Law applies to mankind.
What's next a safe hacker?
nohup rm -rf ~/. >& zen &
I may be wrong but a friend of mine once told me that it's against the law (at least here in NJ, USA) to own lock picking tools unless you're a licenced lock smith.
First, the obligatory link to a mirror of the MIT Lockpicking Guide.
Second - as another poster noted, lock pins aren't typically made from high-strength alloys. A battery-powered hand drill (and a screwdriver to turn the lock when the pins are gone) is the best and fastest lock pick that there is. Didn't even leave any visible damage when I used this approach on a filing cabinet we'd lost the key to. Just pick a bit as wide as the key entryway, and drill down the line of pins.
Be advised that the lock tends to jam after closing again, as the remains of the pins fall back into their channels when the lock returns to its original position. But if you're drilling a lock, you're typically looking for a one-time solution anyways.
...too bad.
We must be alert to the danger that public policy could become captive to a scientific-technological elite. - Eisenhower
Erm...that's what you say to the mainstream media but you can tell the truth here on slashdot. You know full well that very few competitive lockpickers are doing it for anything other than entertainment and very few are actually going to feed back their knowledge to help lock manufacturers improve their products.
Doesn't it make you feel good to know that our freedoms are protected by politicans, lawyers and journalists.
For that matter, most structures surrounding locks aren't indestructible either. When you get down too it, someone can break into a lot of places by driving sledgehammer or truck through the door.
However, that makes lots of noise. It's hard to protect an office building from a bulldozer attack, but then again, it's pretty hard to sneak around with a bulldozer.
Really an attack involving strong acids isn't much more practical. Not many thieves want to walk around with a bottle of highly concentrated HCL hidden in their pocket. (think spillage while trying to run from the police)
Your best bet in any physical security is to try and make the thief do one or more of the following:
1) make a lot of noise (defeating stealth)
2) leave a lot of good evidence about the intrusion (defeating anonymity)
3) use specialized or expensive tools (defeating any financial gain)
4) use a tool too unwieldy or impractical to transport inconspicuously. (defeating stealth)
Of course, scale the measures to fit the value of what you're hiding.
-Matt
i might have to give it a try.. i guess no more useing credit cards to open locks anymore
www.angelfire.com/dc2/stockman/index.html http://www.FreeFlatScreens.com/default.aspx?refer
Forget the link to B&N, try Amazon instead.
Ignorance is the root of all evil.
I've participated in the Lockpick contest for the last 2 years. It's been a blast. Quite a challenge too. The book is'nt anything hugely groundbreaking (check out Security.org for a really amazing book), but it's a good thing to read if your curious or if your like me and are not very good at explaing how to do it to others.
I just find lockpicking facinating because it's yet another case of people proving manufacturers claims are often highly exadurated, or just full of BS. Knowing, and proving for yourself what makes a good lock vs. a bad lock fits well into the computer security dynamic (Physical security anyone?). That extra $1-2 for a master brand lock can buy you several minutes more security vs. a cheap look alike that can be shimmed in about 3 seconds, kind of useful to know. They can both be opened, but your less likely to have a thief willing to be exposed for several minutes than for a few seconds. The Kyptonite vulnerability now makes everyone re-think trusting the manufactureres claims now does'nt it?
It's also a handy skill for those inevitable times when someone locks the server cabinet and loses the key and you don't want to pay a locksmith through the nose. I also use my skill in security audits to very dramatically show how little security that cheap lock on ther server room provides.
I've got some descriptions of the contests and LP resources up at my site and some links to videos and the MIT guide if anyones curious.
Just remember that there is little a set of bolt cutters, a crow bar, or a sledge hammer can't get through. Lockpicking is the 'elegant solution' to that (literal) brute force.
Where are we going, and why are we in this hand cart?
Just use a magnetic lock.
It's nice to know I'm not alone on this. What helped me learn how to pick locks was to break open a kwikiset door knob and switch the pin tumblers around so I could make different combo's. This is great for us poor college students that can't have a bunch of locks on which to practice (English 316 right there!)
It's hard to protect an office building from a bulldozer attack, but then again, it's pretty hard to sneak around with a bulldozer.
:-)
[me pictures someone sneaking tongue-in-cheek with a doze]
rotfl
you just brought some sunshine in my totally boring, rainy and fubar day. Thanks mate.
When will I end this grieving ? When will my future begin ?
Everything Fun In Jersey Is Illegal
...that includes lockpicks, and I've been told, carrying a prybar in your vehicle is a Bad Idea (potential police harassment for carrying "burglar tools"). Hey, I've been harassed for carrying a Victorinox (Swiss Army) pocketknife. Just a basic pocketknife w/ screwdrivers / scissors.
I'm a recovering South Jersey boy. When my wife moved to Jersey with me, within a few months she came up with a song:
Everything Fun In Jersey Is Illegal
Now enjoying a state that's much less restrictive.
In high school we used to pick the cheap locks on the classroom cabinets all the time. The purpose was to steal the rival club's flag then extort community charity work out of them to get it back. My brother got pretty good at locks.
:-)
Then we visited Germany for a month. The house where my brother was staying had a locked closet with a key missing from before the war. No one had opened it in over fifty years. But it was an absurdly easy lock and my brother had the closet open five minutes after being apprised of the problem (four minutes to find a suitably stiff paperclip).
To this day I believe there's still a family in Germany firmly convinced that US students are taught lockpicking and safecracking and other feats of criminal legerdemain.
p.s. No valuables found in closet beyond old moth-eaten coats the wife's old love letters. Ah, how sweet
Don't blame me, I didn't vote for either of them!
Just tried it on the Krypto-Lok sitting next to my desk and once I figured out the trick, I got it open in about 15 seconds.
Basically, you have to shake the lock at the same time that you're turning the pen.
My guess is that shaking and wiggling the pen causes the interface between the pins & spacers to move around, and if you're turning the pen at the same time, the cylinder will rotate a notch as soon as the interface between the leading pin/spacer pair is in the right place. Then you just repeat the same procedure for all the other pin/spacer pairs.
pi = 3.141592653589793helpimtrappedinauniversefactory7
I've made several sets, and it really is this easy. Best way really is to follow the street sweeper. The spring steel bristles that come loose have perfect properties. I've tried making them out of other materials, and the spring steel is quite easy to shape and very resilient.
Then just find a decent pick you want to copy, and sit down at the grinder with your blank bristle. They've still got grinders in my old dorm and the lockpicking culture is indeed alive and well at MIT.
Picking locks is a pretty handy skill to have. How many of us have seen it where somebody accidentally locks the filing cabinet and no one has the key? Or maybe you or your neighbor got locked out of the house? Of course you need the right tools. This place is pretty good to find them. They have jigglers for car locks, standard pick sets, picks for combo briefcase locks, cylindrical locks...Well, just about everything.
-R
This site is rather interesting.
What? You can't get your hands on a bit of plastic explosives?
If you want to practice this on a easy to pick lock, do one of the keyless cable locks. Just pull at the lock to apply pressure. Turn the numbered ring that is hardest to turn (it's rubbing) until it clicks. Repeat on other rings until lock opens.
Just one more reason to vote. And an issue to get your congress critters on.
I'm in the midst of a materials science course and the first day in the lab we spent pulling metal samples apart. and the third. and the fourth. hmm, I think tommorow we either melt stuff or crush... Check the gear http://me.uttyler.edu/MatLab.asp
/. the school
I always threatened to
Bacardi + slashdot = negative karma.
God-fearing, red-blodded, honest Americans would never use a Bic Pen.
If you use a Bic Pen, then the terrorists will have won.
Yeah, right.
...might be this site:
Sportsfreunde der Sperrtechnik - Deutschland e.V.
This is the homepage of a registered association devoted to the sport of opening locks. If you become a member you're allowed to carry picks as they are now sports equipment; make sure you only use them for legal purposes, though!
-- Language is a virus from outer space.
Too bad most of the doorlocks here in Finland are made by Abloy. AFAIK, you need some kind of special tool pick those. One type of Abloy lock has 11 discs and there are close to two billion different combinations.
http://www.abloy.com/
I first learned to pick locks at my childhood church, from my dad. The locks were standard household style locks, on doors that opened outward, so all I needed was a pocketknife.
During High School, I could often be found inside the locked classroom, waiting for the teacher to arrive. I knew which doors opened using which methods, and which windows were nearly impossible to lock properly.
I've learned a few things about physical security over the years. Walls don't always go to the true ceiling. Locks don't always work as advertised. The unknowledgeable don't always understand the proper ways to secure things, and a disgruntled soon to be ex-employee will occasionally just hand you a key you shouldn't have.
With my knowledge of computers, I make it clear that I look the other way when people are typing in their passwords on a PC I'm working on. I want it to be clear to them that I don't know their password. If I want to gain access to a PC, I don't need to know the password before I start anyway.
People come to me when they need to gain access to something they've locked themselves out of on their computer. They have confidence that i can help them. Quite often, I can. A little research, a little knowledge, and the ability to solve problems tends to do the trick.
I've never studied lockpicking. I've never needed to. Locks are usually either very easy to go through, or around. Around is usually the best way.
These days, it's all white-hat. That makes it even more fun.
Visit Lockjaw's Lair. He won't bite.
It's true. My friend at MIT made me a set of picks out of street sweeper bristles a few years ago. Worked great. Of course, I've since lost them, and haven't gotten around to making new ones yet.
I learned to hack and pick locks ( we won't get into credit cards... ) when I went to Capitol Institute of Technology in Laurel MD. Lots of us at the college got into a lot of locks, um, i mean we really got into lock picking!! The area must have changed a lot since then... Athough I heard today of a resurfacing of Marion Barry.... Great place to study Any more Capitol College geeks out there.. Specifically... Anyone else in THE Capitol College Torture Research Club? Come on.. Little john? King Prozac? Don Jay? I know you guys read /. It's not like you guys have HOT DATES between SHADOWRUN sessions...
I wonder if this process will work on ALL circular type locks? Another post here suggests you need to shake the lock a little.. with my luck the machine will tip over and kill me
There were people discussing something like this in a web forum a while ago, but towards firearms permits -- people would apply in as many states as possible for cary permits. Some states had (and may still have) agreements to honor concealed cary permits from other states.
On a related note, I wondered whether I should become a Notary Public, or achieve other types of odd tokens to put on the resume (FCC HAM Lic, SAGE, IEEE, etc.). Not sure whether it would help with the resume, just a thought.
Zhrodague.net - I do projects and stuff too.
Well, he did. The only thing is it wasn't a Master lock but some crap no-name lock made in Taiwan or someplace. The Master method didn't work on it but I decided to see if I could do it by touch (never tried before).
Two minutes later he went back to his office and found his coffee cup padlocked to his chair.
I got some strange looks after that...
Right is wrong when left is right.
Yah, my folks live out in the boonies and robbers out there just kick the doors down. It's not hard to figure out who's on vacation or not home, and several people have had their houses cleaned out while away.
I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?
...and I browse /. when the sales calls aren't heavily inbound. Naturally, I forwarded the link to the other six folks in the department, and everyone's buzzing about it. We will definitely bring it up with the Kryptonite rep the next time he's in the area.
Generally, folks buying locks know that it's just a deterrent... except for the people buying exactly the retails-at-$80 lock (with heavy-duty chain) shown in the movie, who tend to be messengers and/or people with $1k+ bicycles. Personally, my bikes stay locked up in my living room when I'm not on them, and I don't take my lock with me when I seriously ride because that would tempt me to separate myself from the bike. I've got a cheap old schwinn cruiser for that. (=
The pain was excruciating and the scarring is likely permanent, but that just means it's working.
If a mechanical key will open it, there are mechanical devices that a skilled locksmith can use to open it without breaking the lock.
However, there are locks that are complex enough to convince most locksmiths to just buy a drill instead of getting the tools and training neccesary.
excitingthingstodo.blogspot.com
http://lockpicking101.com ba-dow!
Good stuff on that forum if you search. There is a LOT of shiznit to be read in the archives.
rm -rf ~/.signature
"I'm a locksmith, and I'm a locksmith."
Does the deditor not drun the dspell dchecker?
Oh yeah, I forgot, this is dSlashdot.
Ahh, you're right. It's been a while since I read it. Mod parent up.
"A witty saying proves nothing." ~Voltaire
"d'Oh!" ~Homer
...is available for just $18 here. No knowledge of lock picking required. As for doors here's a trick that worked in my college dorm: 1. Standing outside of a locked door, remove the knob using a screwdriver, push the knob bolt through the door so that the knob falls to the floor inside the room. 2. Using a coat hanger bent back to make a "V" shaped hook, push the hook all the way through the door knob bolt hole, manipulate the coat hanger to turn the lock latch inside the door. It helps if you can see what you're doing through a window or if you practiced on a similar door. 3. When lock latch is released use a screwdriver to turn the knob mechanism to open the door. 4. Open the door. Put the knob back on the door. 5. Remove the hinge pins, remove the door, replace door with hippy bead curtain. Wait for resident to return and wonder where their door went.
Oh please, wise and brave anonymous coward, deluge me with further insults so I may one day be brave enough to anonymously insult people.
In other words, bite me.
"A witty saying proves nothing." ~Voltaire
"d'Oh!" ~Homer
While it may be true that bribes are often more useful for spies than other means, I question your story.
Isn't your aunt's father most likely your grandfather?
While you're at it, pick up a copy of Richard Feynman's "Surely you're joking, Mr. Feynman."
In addition to winning the Nobel Prize, Feynman spent much of WWII at Los Alamos working on the atomic bomb. He devotes part of this book to his work there, including his (usually succesful) attempts to crack the many safes & locked file cabinets found at the base. He was very much a computer hacker in the days before computers.
09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0
The bikeforum's article on picking Kryptonite locks has a google ad for, you guessed it, Kryptonite locks.
While the relevance is good, I'm guessing they don't sell many locks on that page.
Okay, in many states you can legally own lockpicks as a hobbyist.
HOWEVER!!
IF YOU ARE ARRESTED FOR -ANY- CRIME, POSSESSION OF LOCKPICKS WILL CAUSE YOU TO ALSO BE CHARGED WITH POSSESSION OF 'BURGLERY TOOLS'! This could even include a speeding ticket if the Officer decides to search you. So if you are going to carry lockpicks on your person, BE CAREFUL!
Post your address, and I'm sure a lock-picking group will find you. Or your stuff, anyway.
sulli
RTFJ.
Sounds like that would be a little too loud.
IIRC one of the biggest selling points of Medeco locks was the fact that they patent their blank designs, and don't license the design to people. That way, to obtain copies of keys for the locks is a very difficult procedure unless you go directly through Medeco. Most places that use Medeco keys are ones where a LOT of people have keys for a certain area, and the main security risk is human rather than mechanical. Limiting peoples' ability to copy and distribute keys can be a better security investment than making the lock harder to pick.
And yet the assault weapons ban has expired.
I bought it 12 years ago - guess they don't make them like they used to:
-On mine, the keyhole is on the straight bar's end, not in the middle.
-On mine, the end of the U bar not interfacing with the lock has a distinct J curve. The one in the video doesn't show this.
Is that a real KryptoLok in the video, or some cheap import?
The father of one of the girls in my church youth group was an RCMP officer. One day (in 1991) she took her dad's handcuffs to youth group, and her best friend Crystal stole them. Crystal exclaimed "Ha! Now I've got you!" and slapped one on her wrist, and one on mine. Her friend's reaction was "uhhh... you know I don't have the key, right?".
I picked them in about 15 seconds with the stem of a bic pen lid. I'm pretty sure it was mostly a fluke.
I am a computer security analyst by trade as well as for the US Navy (Reservist) and I subcontract frequently to teach/lecture for various Fed agencies and private orgs. For example, I teach CISSP courses on occasion for (ISC)^2. Before I was "in to" computer security, I was in to lock picking. I ALWAYS incorporate physical security into ITSEC when I'm teaching/lecturing and I bring someone up from the student base and teach them to pick a "blue-band" Master lock in about a minute (not bad for someone who's never done it). Since someone's already linked to the MIT guide, I won't. I will however strongly recommend any of a number of books by Steven Hampton. Lock picking is a great way to blow hours on end (on a flight, etc.) and makes for a great conversation starter. Anyway, just my input.
I bought a U-shaped KryptoLok 12 years ago. Mine works differently then the one in the video, and does not appear hackable:
-On mine, the keyhole is on the end of the straight bar, not in the middle.
-On mine, the end of the U bar not interfacing with the lock has a distinct J curve. The one in the video doesn't show this.
Is that a real KryptoLok in the video, or some cheap import? Or has Kryptonite just gotten really shoddy?
So I'm at a jobsite and really REALLY needed to pee.
I recalled seeing a bathroom on the floor and when I got there, I was confronted with a pushbutton lock.
The pushbuttons were some kind of polymer, with the numbers PRINTED on them.
Three of the buttons had the numbers worn away.
Needless to say, I solved the lock in a few seconds.
Funny thing, it was an executive-type bathroom, not to be used by scruffy hacker geeks like me.
Or so I was told by the executive-type that found me in there using a urinal.
"Who gave you the combination?"
"Everyone who used the bathroom since the lock was installed, that's who." (FLUSH)
Guaranteed! This comment 100% Anthrax free!
Hey novice lockpickers, be VERY careful! Although the U.S. Patriot Act and Zero Tolerance are not directly connected, the type of thinking is...
In New Jersey, four children received school suspensions for "shooting" at each other (bang! bang!) with extended index fingers. The kids had violated their school's zero-tolerance policy against "weapons".
Commonwealth v. Milo A 12-year-old student drew pictures that depicted his teacher being shot.
In Irvington, N.J., two eight-year-olds have been charged with "making terrorist threats." The boys were "playing cops and robbers with a paper gun,"
This one gang kept wanting me to join cause I'm pretty good with a bo staff.
Someone already did. You were 5 minutes late ;)
a fascinating new sport for the hacking hobbyist which doesn't necessarily involve computers. Steel bolt hacking is the art of competition lock picking that is beginning to make its mark on computer people and other geeks around the world.
Wow. New stuff. Beginning to make its mark. Really?
Sounds like all the Phrack and cDc G-files from the 1980's BBSing. Sorry, kids. Nothing new to see here.
World's tallest building rises in the desert
The credit card trick is easy to defeat. Just make sure the door opens to the inside and unscrew (just a bit) the screws holding the striker plate to the door frame.
:)
Once you know how MOST people will try to break in, it's easy to defeat them. But first you have to learn their tricks.
Now the "odds" question. If there are N possible combinations, and you try one of them, the probability that it is the right one is 1/N, and the probability that it is a wrong one is (N - 1)/N.
Now suppose the 1st try is a failure but the 2nd is a success; the odds of this are [(N - 1)/N] * [1/(N - 1)] = 1/N again. [The 1/(N - 1) factor comes from the fact that on the 2nd try there are N - 1 combinations to try, since you have tried one that does not work and, presumably, will not try it again.] The odds that you will succeed in one or two tries is the sum of the individual probabilities, because they are mutually exclusive events (that is, the first success cannot occur on BOTH the first and second tries). Generalizing to the case of a first success on the Kth try is straightforward.
More likely, the thief moves to a car that they don't have to hacksaw anything. Time is of the essence when you're stealing something in plain sight.
I have a Tennessee permit and can carry in about 45 states (last time I checked).
It's funny though. Permit carriers in some states (like California) can carry legally here, but I can't carry there.
Also for a while, I could carry in Missouri, but Missouri residents couldn't get permits to carry there. Some socialist judge in St. Louis decided the "must issue" clause was unconstitutional, but the carry clause wasn't.
Guns are tools, like screwdrivers, hammers and lockpicks. People just have strange ideas about guns.
In terms of hotwiring or other methods of driving away with a stolen car, Porsches are impossible to steal. They've got factory-installed burglar alarms that are engaged every time you lock the doors. The engine will not start until the alarm is properly disengaged. Someone MIGHT be able to spoof the electronic radio signal that disables the alarm. But then you've got a special key with a computer chip that the car checks before starting the engine. In the end, the best way to steal a porsche is with a flatbed truck. Then chop it and sell it for parts. A used 1997 twin turbo sells for $100k +, so most people keep those vehicles under close watch. I dunno. Thought I'd chime in after laughing at Nick Cage in Gone in 60 Seconds driving away in stolen porches. Ridiculous.
$5 / month hosted VPS on linux = awesome!
In the course of looking into pick-resistant locks about a year ago, I came across these high-end padlocks from Sargent and Greenleaf. Prices: $1282 and $283. No, that is not a typo.
From the description:
Designed to meet stringent US Government specifications:
30 minute protection against expert manipulation
30 minute protection against radiographic attack
10 minute protection against surreptitious entry attack
Does anyone know what they mean by "radiographic attack"? I haven't been able to turn anything up on the web. I imagine that the three-letter-agencies have access to some much higher tech tools than the usual spring steel lock picks we're talking about here. Perhaps there's more room for geek approaches to lock picking than anyone expected.
It's true, I spent years in San Francisco living on the streets and made and used many sets that way.
Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
I've tried this the last 3 times the street sweeper came down our street...brushes running... And I wasn't able to find ANY bristles...not even one! I hunted up and down the street for a long time too.
Any sugestions for other places to get spring steel like street sweeper bristles?
And the judge said I would never amount too anything.
Click HERE
With all the side discussion about "Ok, what's the best way to secure my house", there's something important to remember.
:)
Namely, that there *is* such a thing as being too secure.
Morons who install kevlar window screens, lexan-backed sheetrock, and 50000 spider locks with cross-beams on each door all seem to forget a simple concept -
Some day, your house (or apartment) will have a fire in it. When that happens, you might need to get out of that structure, through those windows, through those doors. And when you can't (because the fire's been going for a good 4 minutes, there is no visibility, and you're dizzy from the phosgenes, monoxides, and methyl-ethyl-badshits in the atmosphere), the fire dept will need to get IN through those windows, through those doors, and breach through those walls to try to find you, or your kids. Once found, the nearest exit (a window) won't be useable; it's "too secure". They can either wait 9 minutes for an outside crew to find and defeat the "window security" (usually via k12 or chainsaw) and hopefully not run out of air during the wait, or the crew will need to drag the victims through the worst areas of the structure (corridors), exposing them to even higher concentrations of ambient death at 800+ degrees, in order to reach a viable egress point. Either way, it's not going to be a rescue. It'll be a recovery... unless the crew fails to abandon you when they're low on air; then it'll be a dead crew as well.
So, when you think about securing your house, understand that some day it can kill you (along with any crew that's trying to reach you, since they can get just as trapped by this bullshit once inside). Understand that you're making this tradeoff, and understand that this tradeoff won't seem worth it when that time finally comes.
Something to think about, at least - meanwhile, back to that book review
help me i've cloned myself and can't remember which one I am
Specifically, you cannot carry wire cutters in your back pocket.
The law dates back to the conflicts between ranchers and farmers near the time of Texas independence. Back then, much of the land was not fenced in, so cattle herders would move their herd around, grazing. Needless to say, the farmers didn't care for that, so they put up barb wire around their lands.
Incidentally, this is a case of technology exciting a reaction: previously, farmers would've been forced to build a wooden or stone fence, and the areas were very large. A barb wire fence, however, was quick and easy to put up, so they were more likely to put one up.
Anyways, a lot of the cattle herders didn't care for these fences, so they'd cut through them with wire cutters, and go on through. Many, in fact, took to cutting barb wire fences wherever they saw them.
So, Texas outlawed casual possession of wire cutters: they can't be in your pocket. They'd better be in a tool box. This is similar to the hassle you'll get from cops if you wander around with a spraypaint bottle poking out of your jacket.
Anyways, that's the story.
Can we PLEASE stop fixing the word 'hacking' to the hobby of ones choice where it really REALLY holds no relevance?! Hey, tonight I'm microwave hacking, so what sort of TV dinner would you like? We can talk about the sky hacking I'll be doing with my friend's RC plane over the weekend. What? You'll be doing some lawn hacking with your mower? Too bad. After our sky hacking session we were going to do some car hacking and put a spoiler ON MY DAMN CAR.
Using this word superfluously is starting to take on the characteristics of the word 'kool'; You sound like you have an IQ of 5, so give it a freakin' rest already.
You need a FREE iPod Nano
I've delt with this before in other institutional locking systems (specifically, Best locks at rpi.edu) - the patent on key blanks only lasts 7 years, and given most lock rotations this is long enough. At RPI, only high value buildings (dorms, new buildings) use the patented, newer, high security cores. Older ones, like the one I was responsible for, can be copied anywhere.
The real security in Medeco is that very few places are equipped to cut medeco keys, and a medeco key looks nothing like a key most people should be legitimately copying.
--
Phil
I had a bike locked with the top-end kryptonite stolen. The thief then kindly re-attached the kryptonite to the bike rack. When I tried to redeem the "lock guarantee" or whatever that ridiculous thing is called, they called me a liar. They said I didn't lock it properly or some such.
:)
I will never buy another lock, ever. I only trust my good bike ( A Trek Project One 5500/5600 (the OCLV 110 from a year or two ago) with campy record) to be within reach. My junker is a 1960s Schwin that cost about $60 and is in 4 colors of cheap spray paint. I just tie it in place with a double figure-eight knot
-WS
An operating system should be like a light switch... simple, effective, easy to use, and designed for everyone.
1. By this book
2. ???
3. Profit!
But Windows isn't open.
Oh, I see you go throught the holes in the window!
This all reminds me of my old caltech days when as freshman, everyone seemed to be fascinated with lockpicking...
And then day, a few of us somehow got the idea to "kidnap" the big-bob statue when we noticed on a late night dining trip it was just made of fibreglass (light enough to carry away) and locked to the sidewalk with a sliding metal rod key padlock.
Instead of picking the padlock (which we probably could have done very easily as we practiced all the time), my buddy decided to just copy down model number and the serial number and take it to a local locksmith and claim we lost the key to the lock and needed a new key. After some convincing, the locksmith went to the back office and pulled out a book, looked up the serial number, cut us a key with his key cutter by pin-code. We borrowed a convertable one night, unlocked the lock, picked bob up, and brought him back to campus. And nobody had to keep lookout why we were attempting to pick the lock... That didn't turn out so well (although caltech laywers were on our side, the big-boy corporation wasn't very amused by our humorous note and eventually we negociated a return in exchange for a no prosecution agreement, but I digress).
Sometime later in life, I ended up losing the only set of keys to my car during a business trip (I gave the other set to my friend who was out of town that weekend). Angry at myself, I took a cab home and fumed for a couple hours. Then thinking back to my college days, I hitched a ride to nearest car dealer (of the same make, but not the same one I bought the car from, don't want to single a vendor out for a security lapse) told the guy in the replacement parts department I lost my car key, but I knew the VIN code to the car (duh, you can see that through the windscreen), he looked up the VIN code in their national database (I bought my car new) found my name, I showed him my ID and he then cut me a key by pin code and I had a brand spanking new key to my car. If I was a bit more convincing, I'll bet I could have convinced him to do it for me even w/o an id, by just knowing the name of the original owner...
The lesson I learned from all this is that the most essential tool for most things is often just your mouth (and chutzpah) when it comes to locks...
Lever locks have the combination component one step removed from the input component, which makes them harder to force. If you try to force a lever lock, you may trash the levers, but that won't open the lock.
Safe deposit boxes are traditionally lever locks, although not always very good ones. Jail locks are usually level locks of massive size.
Lever locks are usually big rectangular boxes, unsuitable for embedding in a door. So they're not used much unless serious security is required, as in a jail.
I think you can carry legally in every state, by virtue of the "full faith and credit" clause of the
Constitution. Not that it would necessarily matter what the law was, in a court. Obviously, I'm not a
lawyer, or I would have blown my own head off long ago.
-I like my women like I like my tea: green-
You might want to take a better look at which states allow you to carry and which don't.
Tennessee's official record states reciprocity with 11 states, and lists another 16 states recognize the Tennessee permit, for a total of 27.
Assa Abloy is a Swedish company that manufactures some of the hardest locks in the world to pick.
Got into the lockpicking thing years ago while in the Navy. ( Had to learn SOMETHING floating on the ocean for months at a time ) After a lot of practice, I found I could rip through the majority of locks in very short order. Those that I could not ( Medeco, Abloy, and a few others ) I usually took apart to learn why.
The higher dollar locks usually have tighter tolerances, pick resistant tumblers, and exotic or very tough metals to contend with to resist cutting.
Of course, the locks like the Medeco cylinder I described above are only as useful as the structure they are attached to. You don't put high dollar cylinders on a hollow core door. :) The Medeco I was able to look at was one of the locks on a Tomahawk Cruise Missile Armored Box Launcher. Beating the door off that thing was out of the question, as was any climbing through a window theories. That was my official cover in the Navy. Tomahawk Weapons Control System Tech. In reality I was a super-geek ninja-locksmith. :)
It's a damn nice skill to learn and understand. Though you get the evil eye from the local locksmith if you walk in and start talking about mushroom pins, rake picks, and the like. It gives you an insight on why most locks simply keep the honest folk honest. :)
With a little knowledge and NO training, I picked every lock in my house except the front door with just a straight hairpin and an L shaped hairpin in about a minute for each lock.
Every lock we used at a US military contractor for secret documents was a COMBINATION LOCK.
My conclusion? Trust only combination locks.
Never did pick that front door, tho.
Heh, I've always been very interested in this kind of stuff. I even got my hands on a couple of lockpicks back in my late high-school/early college days. I never managed to open door locks, but I could get into a file cabinet (and more usefully, the parent's liquor cabinet!) handily enough. Actually, I already had a workaround for the liquor cabinet, but developing this skill meant that I no longer had to unscrew/reattach the door! =-)
Anyway, I bought a cheap CVS combo lock (For those not in the know, CVS is a pharmacy/chemist that in addition sells other health products, such as cigarettes, in addition to other miscellaneous crap) to put on my locker at the health club. I was just playing with it right now, to see if the "Master Lock Cracking Widget" would apply to it. Well, I'm reading the article and playing with it and the fucking thing comes open in my hand! What a fluke, I figure. Not so. To open it, I merely have to pull on the lock while I turn the dial clockwise a few turns (hearing numerous clicks along the way). I then reverse direction and turn the dial CCW for a bit. You'll feel the U bar release a tiny bit as you do this, and if you keep turning, the fucking thing will spread open like a two-dollar whore!
Oh well, I suppose I'll have to get another lock when I get the chance. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, based on the quality of other CVS branded crap I've had to deal with.
About 15 years ago, I remember locks on Kryptonites could be drilled out quite quickly. The bars themselves are sure solid, but the lock cores, at least at that time, were made of a relatively soft metal.
The reason I mention this here is that if you had trouble with their "Lock Guarantee," you could have just drilled out the lock yourself, and sent it in damaged. A bit dishonest, but it would be for the right reason.
I reckon the bike thief used more conventional lock-picking tools.
Am I wrong? Or can they?
For what its worth, I fell really bad for you. It must suck. As a mountain bike enthusiast (yours must a been a road bike with Compagnalo..?), I know that bike is not only worth a lot of money but its worth a lot of good memories. Same analogy can be made with a motorcycle or car.
I've never had a bike stolen. I've kept my good bike out of site until I ride it.
When I tried to redeem the "lock guarantee" or whatever that ridiculous thing is called, they called me a liar. They said I didn't lock it properly or some such.
It is standard practice, for insurance companies for example, to initially state that the claim is denied (for some given reason).
You need to push the issue and threaten legal action to get them to pay up.
These companies try the first tack, because MANY people just give up there and then. It never gets to a legal point because it is not worth it for them. If you are right and you push the issue, you will probably get your money.
/never got laid in high school
Evil is the money of root.
http://www.lockpicking101.com/.
Plenty of forums on lock-picking...
this is really impressioning. just like opening "dimple" locks with foil wrapped deep cut blanks.
And what useful job can a gun do?
Screwdrivers, hammers and lockpicks have a legitimate purpose in everyday life. Guns don't.
of having your locks picked open; picking is the least likely way for someone to get your property. you can buy all the expensive, anti-pick locks, have them professionally installed, only to have them drilled out, or the door hinges taken off, or a hackaw taken to the shackle or any number of easier, more efficient ways to get in to places. theives don't care about not damaging your locks.
10 years ago, I stumbled across the MIT lock-picking guide. After reading through it, I found a place in town to purchase some lock picks. "The Spy Store" was a place with all sorts of interesting items: hidden cameras (way before nanny cams became common), knife pens, offers for armoring your vehicle, brass knuckles, hidden tape recorders, parabolic microphones, bugging equipment, and of course, lock picks (interestingly enough, they were shut down a few years later for selling items that were only supposed to go to law enforcement officials).
Anyway, armed with only what I had read, I got home to my cheap little apartment, and proceeded to pick my house lock in 15 seconds - without ever picking a lock before. Needless to say, I was both amazed and scared.
Over the next few weeks I practiced my new found skill on all sorts of locks and learned a wonderful secret about corporate America: their locks aren't cheap, but are generally keyed 2-3 different ways (1 security key could open all locks in the building, each floor had a floor "warden" who possessed a key to get into any office on that floor, and of course, my own personal key) making them very easy to pick.
I had a guy in my office that loved to play pranks on people. One day, I noticed that he had left his car (Toyata Celica) in the parking garage overnight. Of course, he had it secured with one of those fancy devices known as "The Club". I eyeballed the car & thought, "what the hell...let's see what I can do." I was able to pick the outside lock after lots of effort. Once inside, I was amazed at how quickly "The Club" opened up to me...20 seconds (my first attempt on the club). The ignition lock was very tough & I was never able to pick it. After some thinking, I realized that a manual transmission car could be pushed around the parking garage, as long as I was careful not to lock the wheel. In the end (after some serious pushing back & forth) I had moved the car 20 parking spots down and on the other side of the garage. I locked the Club back into position, locked the door, & went home.
The next day, he came into the office with a really freaked out look on his face. He told people that he thought someone had the keys to his car & was using it. After letting him sweat it out for the rest of the day, I told him the truth. He was a little pissed, but was able to get a chuckle out of it.
From that day forward, anytime someone (even my boss) had lost a key, they'd just come see me.
The MIT Lockpicking guide is a nice starter on lockpicking. Give it a look if you have the chance.
While the relevance is good, I'm guessing they don't sell many locks on that page.
On the contrary, they probably sell lots of locks to people practicing their lock-picking.
AFAIK, and I do indeed know, Medeco locks can be picked. Tools do exist, and you can make them yourself if you have a decent clue.
Hmm. Obviously you are NOT a Lawyer. In every State statute concerning burglary instruments I have read (40 or so) INTENT is a necessary element to be charged. In some states, possession may be considered prima facie evidence of intent. I am also not a lawyer, so caveat lector!
Good point. I'll try this in the future.
-WS
An operating system should be like a light switch... simple, effective, easy to use, and designed for everyone.
So you're going to jail ...
See #14
"Love heals scars love left." -- Henry Rollins
Just use a magnetic lock.
Actually, those are a pretty bad idea.
(I have a couple BTW).
The problem is that it's just too damned easy to make an automated, electronic pick. (Imagine a set of coils being driven by a binary counter.)
I might even be possible to take just one big electromagnet and make all the pins oscillate so fast you could just pull the shackle and it would open itself.
One of the huge problems on the magnetic lock that I own is that there's not enough physical restriction. The key isnt inserted into the lock, it's pressed up against the side. This means that my bank of electromagnets can be of virtually unlimted size so long as the area of interest matches up with the side of the lock.
Life is too short to proofread.
Also, the book suggests that there might be a lock-picking group in every city in the U.S., when in fact I am having a difficult time finding one in my are. And I live near D.C. -- You'd think there would be one on every corner around here.
You'd probably be right in that assumption. Your problem is, you're assuming that all the people in the DC area that know how to pick locks are willing to flaunt this ability. 3-letter agents (CIA, NSA, etc), spies from every country in the world, etc, aren't likely to join these groups, even though they're likely to be masters.
Global warming is neither science, nor politics. It is a religion.
shoot you in the face
Cops can't search you for speeding. If you let them do it, you're the fool. Or the victim of an evil officer, who doesn't work by the book, in which case a complaint would be in place.
Eat the rich.
"466. Every person having upon him or her in his or her possession a picklock, crow, keybit, crowbar, screwdriver, vise grip pliers, water-pump pliers, slidehammer, slim jim, tension bar, lock pick gun, tubular lock pick, floor-safe door puller, master key, ceramic or porcelain spark plug chips or pieces, or other instrument or tool with intent feloniously to break or enter into any building, railroad car, aircraft, or vessel, trailer coach, or vehicle as defined in the Vehicle Code, or who shall knowingly make or alter, or shall attempt to make or alter, any key or other instrument named above so that the same will fit or open the lock of a building, railroad car, aircraft, vessel, trailer coach, or vehicle as defined in the Vehicle Code, without being requested to do so by some person having the right to open the same, or who shall make, alter, or repair any instrument or thing, knowing or having reason to believe that it is intended to be used in committing a misdemeanor or felony, is guilty of a misdemeanor. Any of the structures mentioned in Section 459 shall be deemed to be a building within the meaning of this section."
I interpret this as owning lockpicks are legal, using them to commit a crime is a misdemeanor. Complete lockpicking laws - From FindLaw.
Pat
Guns are tools, like screwdrivers, hammers and lockpicks.
The big difference is that screwdrivers are not designed with the main aim of killing people. Guns generally are.
Be nice to people on the way up. You will meet them again on your way down!
what is the advantage of using quicktime?
would hav been easier if Mpg format is used....
Is quick time present in all computers?Ugh! got tta install for this one video!?
Why does yahoo do this
it's always nice to read these books to see what exploits are availabe and what locks sould be avoided... remember seeing a hope 2k lock picking presentation in which a lock that was supposedly unpickable was defeaded with a moded key and some tape... so it's always good to stay on the up and up...
All the torrents you could want.
In many other cases, I would have agreed with you. But in the case of lock picking, you're patently and obviously wrong. The analogy between hacking an unsecure box and breaking into an unsecure home (or whatever) is pretty freaking obvious. Additionally, there are extreme strong ties between the lock picking and the hacker culture. They both originated at MIT at the same time and they were both done by the same group of people.
You just have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. And, what's worse, you're a complete and utter moron who just made a damn fool of yourself. You don't belong here.
BN are out of Steel Bolt Hacking, you can go the either Amazon.com for my website; www.thenetworkadministrator.com http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0974 463019/qid%3D1080745422/sr%3D1-2/102-3163875-26233 55
Doug Chick
This probably won't work for military installations, and also not for perimeter guards, but once you're past the heavily guarded perimeter and going through the weaker internal security boundaries (doors where you have to punch a combination, or internal key-carded doors), just act like you belong there and just "happen" to be coming along at the moment when someone else is just going through the door. Holding the door for someone else is a natural habbit, and one that can only be broken by large amounts of rigorous security instruction. (e.g. college campuses that just have electronic card locks and not guards are wide open to almost any person of approximately the right age)
I use a Brompton folding bike and don't use a lock. It comes with me wherever I go. You don't need a lock when the bike is collapsible into a volume that fits under your office chair. (I'd post a link to my web page showing the photos as it folds, but my web hoster would strangle me for slashdotting their site.)
404555974007725459910684486621289147856453481154 in hex is "You sank my Battleship?"
[GPG key in journal]
I've made picks from the bristles, and have some comments:
(1) You don't need to follow the sweeper. It's not like anything *else* comes by to sweep away the bristles! Just walk along the edge looking for them.
(2) The bristles are hard to perceive at first; it's something about what your mind is trained to see. It may take 30 mins to find your first one. 5 minutes for your second. Then you'll see them all over! An interesting side effect is, after your mind is trained, you can't *help* but see them all over. Your friends will think you are weird for constantly stopping and picking them up.
(3) The bristles make excellent torsion wrenches, but IMO are not sufficiently broad to carve down into picks suitable for some of the longer reaches necessary in door locks (if you have a short pin behind a long one). They're fine for push-up-and-release though.
(4) Usually the bristles have, at most, surface rust. Use sandpaper to clean them up.
No I am not a lawyer. However, I do know what the law says in many states about this.
I may be wrong on this, because the law has changed several times due to challenges in the Supreme Court, etc. However I do believe that a Cop who pulls you over for any 'valid' reason, can search you and your car. I don't think it's right, but I do believe that is currently the law.
If you can show otherwise, please do, I really would like to see it. I'd love to be wrong on this one.
Just saw a story related to this on the Tribune website http://www.chicagotribune.com/technology/orl-bk-bi kelock091604,1,2104099.story?coll=chi-technology-h ed
Slashdot influences the world!
Art IV, Sec. 1
Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State. And the Congress may by general Laws prescribe the Manner in which such Acts, Records and Proceedings shall be proved, and the Effect thereof.
"Nobody's Safe" by Richard Steinberg - Bantam softback = $6.50
:)
Basically a guy that is REALLY good at picking locks, and is a "off the radar" burglar acidently robs the wrong safe.... witnesses a murder and finds out the goverment DOES have secrets in Area 51 and he plans on picking his way in to figure out why the government is hiding the aliens...
Ok, I really thought it was a good book till the alien part got mixed in... But hey, it's fiction... Lots of interesting locks but I'm sure most of it is just bs.... but besides normal analog locks, he also has to face wired doors, a sismic sensor laden deser floor, IR detectors, etc...
Of course I'm sure that it's a coincidence that the evil senator that is running for Pres and has known about the aliens all of career, is named "Kerry" but it was published 1999, so go figure...
--- Relax, that mass muderer is just trying to reduce our carbon footprint, one fetus at a time...
Those are true dipshits. Not anarchists. Anarchists shouldn't be jealous of other peoples' material possessions. If they are, then they are increasing the scope of those who oppress them.
Great. Destroy someones' bicycle. Encourage them to drive a car. Way to go "anarchists." You really have fucked the system now!
$5 / month hosted VPS on linux = awesome!
Self defense and the defence of others seems a useful function. To me, at least.
YMMV...
Relevant paragraphs for the lazy: