Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

The Current State of Smart Locks

schuylertowne.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–20 of 53 posts

Re: The Current State of Smart Locks

#11

Post by prostoalex »

chestnut-tree wrote: post #7
emhart wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm glad you referenced that article with your concerns, I'm actually quoted it in, but I think it was a bit of a shallow examination of a very deep topic. I have my sole passion on the line when it comes to the decline of purely mechanical locks. My heart is brass and pumps grease. I love locks. That said - folks who can't imagine a time when the majority of door locks are electromechanical might wind up on the wron…

I realise my conservative attitude is somehwat contradictory given that many apartment blocks have an electronic entry system to the building for guests who ring the doorbell/press the buzzer. And yet, a mechanical lock for my front door still feels more re-assuring to me than an electronic one. But as you say, we're in the "early adopter" phase and perhaps it's just a matter of time before electromechanical locks be…

Don't electronic locks come with a backup key in case the battery goes dead? I have a Schlage Camelot and it does have a spare key, not sure if it's commonplace.

Re: The Current State of Smart Locks

#12

Post by emhart »

BryanB55 wrote: post #9

I was hoping for more of a security testing/review of each of the locks. It's hard to find any real world tests that have been done on these locks to see how hard they are to physically compromise. I have the Yale lock but without the keyhole on it and without the z-wave module in it. I chose this one because it was one of the few that avoided having an actual keyhole on it to lessen the chances of being picked or bu…

Yeah, sorry to fall short of actual physical testing. There are some awesome researchers champing at the bit to get their hands on a collection of these locks, so expect blog posts, conference presentations and papers to start trickling out over the next year or so.

Personally, I'm very interested in your experience of living sans key. Do you live with anyone else? Was there any discussion or extended thought process before making the switch? Do you have an idea of what your ideal lock would be/do?

Re: The Current State of Smart Locks

#13

Post by emhart »

prostoalex wrote: post #11
chestnut-tree wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I realise my conservative attitude is somehwat contradictory given that many apartment blocks have an electronic entry system to the building for guests who ring the doorbell/press the buzzer. And yet, a mechanical lock for my front door still feels more re-assuring to me than an electronic one. But as you say, we're in the "early adopter" phase and perhaps it's just a matter of time before electromechanical locks be…

Don't electronic locks come with a backup key in case the battery goes dead? I have a Schlage Camelot and it does have a spare key, not sure if it's commonplace.

Most do, only the Haven explicitly positions themselves as anti-key, but Yale offers a keyless experience and it is possible to go completely keyless with both Lockitron and August as well.

Re: The Current State of Smart Locks

#15

Post by emhart »

chestnut-tree wrote: post #7
emhart wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm glad you referenced that article with your concerns, I'm actually quoted it in, but I think it was a bit of a shallow examination of a very deep topic. I have my sole passion on the line when it comes to the decline of purely mechanical locks. My heart is brass and pumps grease. I love locks. That said - folks who can't imagine a time when the majority of door locks are electromechanical might wind up on the wron…

I realise my conservative attitude is somehwat contradictory given that many apartment blocks have an electronic entry system to the building for guests who ring the doorbell/press the buzzer. And yet, a mechanical lock for my front door still feels more re-assuring to me than an electronic one. But as you say, we're in the "early adopter" phase and perhaps it's just a matter of time before electromechanical locks be…

Mechanical locks will always be more comfortable to me, I'm sure. But I think that has something to do with understanding how it works. I'm a mechanical security guy, I'm able to follow the general field of electromechanical security and have a sense of info/network/app security, but I'll probably never completely know how those things are keeping me safe.

Re: The Current State of Smart Locks

#16

Post by emhart »

Rafert wrote: post #14

Interesting read! Do you have any thoughts on the qKey system from the Dutch startup Ubiqu? http://www.ubiqu.nl/

Oh, this is awesome! Thanks for the heads up and kind words . I don't, yet, have any thoughts, but 2 of the 3 mentors/teachers I mentioned at the top are Dutch, so I will be hitting them up for their insights. You can find them at:

Barry Wels: https://twitter.com/barrywels Han Fey: http://hanfeylocktechnologies.com/

Re: The Current State of Smart Locks

#17

Post by BryanB55 »

emhart wrote: post #12
BryanB55 wrote: post #9

I was hoping for more of a security testing/review of each of the locks. It's hard to find any real world tests that have been done on these locks to see how hard they are to physically compromise. I have the Yale lock but without the keyhole on it and without the z-wave module in it. I chose this one because it was one of the few that avoided having an actual keyhole on it to lessen the chances of being picked or bu…

Yeah, sorry to fall short of actual physical testing. There are some awesome researchers champing at the bit to get their hands on a collection of these locks, so expect blog posts, conference presentations and papers to start trickling out over the next year or so. Personally, I'm very interested in your experience of living sans key. Do you live with anyone else? Was there any discussion or extended thought process…

Living with no key is great. Just need to remember a 4-8 digit pin code. All I carry now is a key fob for my car. I live with my girlfriend and we each now have our own pin codes on the Yale lock, super easy to use and I've had installed now for 1 year and have not had to change the batteries yet. The auto locking feature is also nice so no one forgets to lock the door, it just locks after about a minute. If I'm expecting friends or a maid I can input a new code for them in 2 seconds right from the lock.

My ideal lock is pretty close to the Yale: - Physically tough (not sure if the Yale lock is but it feels pretty hefty to me) - No key hole - 4+ digit pin codes - Multiple pin codes - Auto lock only when door is closed (the Yale does it based solely on time) - Easy way to plug/unplug a z-wave or zigbee module. Although I don't see much benefit to having my lock hooked up to the internet. I can simply tell people my guest code that is programmed on the lock if I need to let someone in and I'd prefer not to open up another possible attack vector.

I also have a Samsung EZON 3120 which has been discontinued but I like that it locks only when the door is closed.Also when typing in a pin code it makes you hit two random numbers on the key pad before entering your pin code to make it harder for someone looking over your shoulder to figure out the code and/or leave fingerprints of your code on the touch pad.

Re: The Current State of Smart Locks

#18

Post by patcon »

For anyone interested in this space, i recommend looking into ethereum, a bitcoin-like network. There's been lots of talk of "smart property" relating to blockchain technology, and imho, locks are the perfect starter use-case. I mean, locks are all about proving ownership, so what better arena to test the idea of using a cryptographic ledger of ownership. I've spent a little time considering how to port the lockitron api into an ethereum contract, and I don't expect it to be too difficult

Re: The Current State of Smart Locks

#19

Post by Someone »

There's also "smart with a somewhat traditional key" as in http://www.iloq.com. Doesn't talk to your smartphone; actually, doesn't talk at all until a key is inserted. That removes many privacy/security concerns. Open question for me is how easy this is to crack and how reliable it will be (if you have a valid key, will you be able to get in, even after a few years of wear and tear?)
Post reply on HN