Slashdot Mirror


Skip the Picks; Expert Uses Hammer To Open a Master Lock (csoonline.com)

itwbennett writes: Buyer beware. If it's security you're looking for, the #3 Master Lock might not be for you. In a video, locksport enthusiast Bosnian Bill demonstrates how to open a new #3 Master Lock using a small brass hammer — in under 90 seconds. This video is just one of several videos he's produced focusing on defeating the security of Master Locks, and, according to Bosnian Bill, has earned him several lawsuit threats from the company.

16 of 222 comments (clear)

  1. Re:I'd be more worried about bump-key or bolt-cutt by paulej72 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    But I could probably do the hammer thing with a rock I pick up near the location I want to enter, rather than carry a pair of bolt cutters with me.

  2. 90 seconds? No, a lot less by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 4, Informative

    how to open a new #3 Master Lock using a small brass hammer — in under 90 seconds.

    The entire video is 72 seconds long. The actual defeating of the lock takes a grand total of five seconds.

    So yeah, technically that is under 90 seconds. But you're really understating it.

    --
    systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
  3. Re:heh by Coren22 · · Score: 5, Informative

    Um, this method didn't leave any kind of evidence it was done, he didn't even hit it hard with the hammer, just enough to get the lock catch to release.

    --
    APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
  4. Re:Forgot to mention... by Coren22 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    But, can an acetylene torch, bolt cutters, or hydrofluoric acid leave you a complete lack of evidence of tampering? He didn't smash the lock, just tapped it.

    --
    APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
  5. Re:heh by Sowelu · · Score: 5, Informative

    Yeah except he's not hitting it "hard" like you're thinking. "If a hammer isn't an option, a screwdriver handle works just as well." -- it's not like he's using a sledgehammer here. This isn't an attack on the structural integrity of the lock itself, it's more unlocking it like a bump key, and you can re-lock it without leaving evidence you messed with it.

  6. Re:heh by bobbied · · Score: 4, Informative

    technology, news for nerds, stuff that matters

    "derp, you can open a lock by hitting it friggin hard with a hammer"

    Yes indeed.

    No, he's not hitting it hard with a hammer. This approach is not about brute force, it's about applying a shock to over come a small spring that holds the pin that locks the shackle closed.

    But everybody needs to realize that locks and keys only keep honest people honest anyway. There is not much you can do to stop somebody from breaking in if they really want to. About all you can hope for is to make it take long enough to break in that they get caught when they try.

    --
    "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
  7. Re:WTF by hawguy · · Score: 3, Informative

    Doesn't totally twatting the fuck out of the lock leave the bolt(s) still engaged?

    Oh hang on, it's a padlock. Where not only the body of the lock, but the actual bit that links to the door is completely exposed.

    Try this one neat trick with an angle grinder!

    An angle grinder makes a lot more noise, is harder to keep in a pocket, and prevents you from locking it back up again to hide your tracks.

  8. I'm confident 80% of posters didn't watch video by JMZero · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This isn't like "oh, I can eventually break this lock by smashing it", it's "this lock opens if you tap it in the right place". It takes seconds, and requires nothing in the way of fancy technique or specialized tools.

    Yes, we all get it, any lock can be defeated - but this isn't the right story to use that stock comment on. This isn't someone smashing a small lock with a big hammer - this is someone demonstrating how defective a particular lock is, and it makes for an entertaining little video.

    --
    Let's not stir that bag of worms...
    1. Re:I'm confident 80% of posters didn't watch video by honestmonkey · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I'm guessing it's more like 90%. "Duh, you can smash a lock, doy doy doy!" Not what this was about at all. Even one of the comments on yours was something about needed a lot of practice, which with this technique you don't. Put some tension on the lock tap it on the side. I suppose that the headline was not nuanced enough. "Skip the picks, just tap the lock on the side".

      --
      Everything you know is wrong, Just forget the words and sing along.
  9. STOP by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Hammer time!

  10. A lot of comments about bashing the lock... by Marful · · Score: 4, Informative

    ... it's quite evident that not many posters actually watched the video.

    The lock isn't being smashed, bashed, smacked or slammed. It's being gently tapped with a brass hammer.

    So mentioning bolt cutters, sledge hammers and acetylene torches is about as pertinent as launching into a diatribe about how Mandarin is a hard language to learn, with all of it's tonal inflections, when the discussion topic is about programming languages...

  11. Designed to be difficult to pick by ebonum · · Score: 3, Interesting

    This a new lock:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

    It's on kickstarter now:
    https://www.kickstarter.com/pr...

    You'd think Master Lock with all their cash would come up with clever ideas like this lock's mechanism.

  12. Re:heh by Hussman32 · · Score: 4, Informative

    I think the concern is you can open the lock without any physical damage, get what you want, and close the lock (they didn't demonstrate that on the video, but it looks like it's fine). They barely tapped the lock with the hammer, and you could do it with any small weighted object. Much less obvious than bolt cutters.

    --
    "Who are you?" "No one of consequence." "I must know." "Get used to disappointment."
  13. Re: heh by corychristison · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I used to apprentice for a local locksmith company.

    The Masterlock #-series locks are sheer pin locks. That is, in order to set the pins, you literally insert the key you want it keyed to, and sheer the pins off to the lengths that match the cuts in the key. This makes them really easy to pick already, I've gotten into one with a small paperclip, so I wouldn't even recommend them for minor things like keeping the kids out of your wifes box of dildos. They can be convenient only in a situation where you need lots of them fast (I had it down to ~20 seconds per lock).

    As mentioned in the article, American Padlock (owned by MasterLock), Abus (I really like these personally), or even Guard brand padlocks are a safer bet.

    The American and Abus padlocks can have the cylinder removed and recoded easily (as long as you have a key), saving you from buying a whole new lock if you simply want to keep one keyholder out for whatever reason.

  14. Re:heh by bobbied · · Score: 5, Insightful

    You do realize that the saying "keeping honest people honest" is a common idiom, I didn't invent it.

    This idiom is contradictory on it's face but it illustrates a truth about people and the human condition, nobody is perfect. You can obtain a large amount of compliance by placing even token limits on behavior. It's why we paint lines on roads, put locks on doors, label doors "Entry Only" (when by law they must function as an exit) and put DNS filters on company networks to keep NSFW surfing down. We encourage generally honest people to stay on the straight and narrow by offering even token amounts of effort to step over into "dishonest" behavior. None of my examples are any more than tokens and all are easily circumvented with little effort and serve to encourage imperfect people to do the right things because most of us actually have a conscience that we listen to and it screams loudly when it take effort to do wrong.

    So, really, NOBODY is totally honest, but keeping the majority of people from being dishonest doesn't usually take much.... Which if you think about the idiom, is a clever illustration of the concept, even if it has logical consistency issues because none of us are perfect..

    --
    "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
  15. Re:books work too by stooo · · Score: 4, Funny

    That's a Textbook unlocking.

    --
    aaaaaaa