Thanks to reader JD for a submission to Made By Monkeys - please do keep them coming.This is one to handle carefully, as it is about the apparent fallibility of a lock design... However, the thieves already know about this because it has long been out in the public domain. Check out this Wired article from 2004 - Twist a Pen, Open a Lock
The products in question are Kryptonite Locks. "Perhaps Lex Luthor had a hand in it...," says JD. The locks "use an axial pin tumbler, a common cylindrical design used in a wide variety of products," states Wired.
"A 50-year-old lock design was rendered useless [...] when a brief post to an Internet forum revealed the lock can be popped open with a cheap plastic pen," begins the report.The team successfully tested Brennan's claims - a brand new Kryptonite Evolution 2000 was opened within seconds using a cheap biro. Apparently, after briefly modifying the pen's barrel, the lock could be opened with a single twist...
"On Sunday, bike enthusiast and network security consultant Chris Brennan described opening an expensive Kryptonite bike lock using a ballpoint pen."
Read the full story >>
See also: An Engineer in Wonderland - Lock ignorance and a frightening revelation
Subscribe to this blog's feed
Comments (2)
It maybe worthwhile noting that the quote (which references last week), is from an article dated September 2004.
Posted by meg | December 16, 2009 1:48 PM
Thanks Meg - good point. I honestly didn't clock the date ('09.17.04'). Reference to 'last week' does become rather misleading, in what is otherwise a still relevant post. I'll flag the 2004 date more clearly.
Posted by Alun Williams - Electronics Weekly.com
|
December 16, 2009 2:03 PM