Padlocks

[Jawloms]

Anyone use any NFC padlocks? We have Salto throughout, but it is well known (even their resellers say it) that their padlocks are garbage. Anyone use one which works well for them? Will they work with our existing Salto badges?

[bald_pig]

I wouldn't trust any NFC padlock, All the ones I've seen just aren't up to the task. I believe a master-keyed SFIC lock will be the best option here

[DalekSec]

Hello this is the lockpicking lawyer, and today I'll pick this cheap NFC padlock with a magnet

[Jawloms]

Hello this is the lockpicking lawyer, and today I'll pick this cheap NFC padlock with a magnet

 

Sorry - no idea what this means. Also, I didn't say I want a cheap one, happy to buy a decent one, but my question is do they exist? There are reasons we'd like one which can read badges but if it isn't an option then we'll go for a standard padlock and work around the issues it causes.

[synaesthesia]

Search on youtube. Sorry, you'll be there a while, watching him pick the worlds most secure locks with ease.

If he can't do it with a leaf, part of a Red Bull can or by hitting it with a small rubber mallet, he and Bosnian Bill will have a tool for it.

Literally EVERY biometric or NFC lock he's ever gone near can be opened by going near it with a not even powerful magnet.

[Boredguy]

Lockpicking Lawyer is a YouTuber who is a lawyer in real life in the US and picks lots of locks, and shows how easy it is to bypass them.

 

Padlocks that rely on a RFID or fingerprint to open them, can be easily bypassed by using a strong magnet to trigger the solenoid to open it, so depending what you want to use them for, you would be just as well getting cheaper keyed padlocks that might need a tool to open more than a magnet if someone was so inclined.

[Ironside]

Sorry - no idea what this means. Also, I didn't say I want a cheap one, happy to buy a decent one, but my question is do they exist? There are reasons we'd like one which can read badges but if it isn't an option then we'll go for a standard padlock and work around the issues it causes.

 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCm9K6rby98W8JigLoZOh6FQ

[Jawloms]

Thanks all for clarifying. Looks like I won't go down that route then! The padlock is going to be more of a deterrent than trying to give 100% security, but even so.....

 

We'll go with a combination, which the kids will invariably find out, or keys, which will get lost (sorry; I mean "someone has taken it") route.

[Boredguy]

Going for the Key at least allows copies to be made and kept safe if required. Combination locks can often be opened faster with a red bull can than with the code

[Garacesh]

Going for the Key at least allows copies to be made and kept safe if required. Combination locks can often be opened faster with a red bull can than with the code

 

This genuinely isn't hyperbole.

To an experienced lockpicker (which admittedly probably isn't your case, you're likely just looking to keep out opportunists, but still...) a soft drinks can is usually just the right thickness to either make a shim out of (to slip down the shackle to move the locking mechanism out of the way) or to slide between the side of the code wheel and the lock (to feel around behind the code wheel and decode the lock by feeling for the flat spots)

 

Also you've also got the issue that a (somewhat determined) attacker could show up night after night until they brute-force the code. Who's gonna know? Do you check your CCTV every day when you get in?

 

Keys are your best bet. Still beatable, by all means (and of course, not many padlocks are safe from ye olde bolt cutters!) but they're a tried-and-true method with a relatively easy way to duplicate the access token (key).

Granted less easy than the code lock, and you can't as easily revoke the access token (change the code vs make them give you the key back) but when you're deciding where your tradeoff between convenience and security is, I'd go for your standard pin-tumbler lock.

[LeMarchand]

This genuinely isn't hyperbole.

To an experienced lockpicker (which admittedly probably isn't your case, you're likely just looking to keep out opportunists, but still...) a soft drinks can is usually just the right thickness to either make a shim out of (to slip down the shackle to move the locking mechanism out of the way) or to slide between the side of the code wheel and the lock (to feel around behind the code wheel and decode the lock by feeling for the flat spots)

 

Yep, the only lock I've ever picked (which shows my "experience" level) was via the latter method; didn't take long and was a well-known brand name lock.

[MatthewL]

Spend the money get padlocks on keyed a like locks if you already have this for doors in school should be easy to expand.

[Duranis]

This genuinely isn't hyperbole.

To an experienced lockpicker (which admittedly probably isn't your case, you're likely just looking to keep out opportunists, but still...) a soft drinks can is usually just the right thickness to either make a shim out of (to slip down the shackle to move the locking mechanism out of the way) or to slide between the side of the code wheel and the lock (to feel around behind the code wheel and decode the lock by feeling for the flat spots)

I took up lockpicking a couple of years ago as a bit of a passing hobby. I haven't spent a lot of time practicing but it is a real eye opener for just how simple many locks are to get through. Combination locks, cheap unshielded padlocks and electronic locks especially can normally be opened in seconds with really low skill attacks. when I removed the projectors here the mounts where all locked in with padlocks that nobody had the keys for anymore. I managed to rack each of them open in less than a minute, if I didn't care about being non-destructive I could have bolt cut them off in even less time.

 

The biggest strongest Abus or Squire closed shackle padlock you can fit is probably the best bet in terms of entry resistance. Generally these brands are pretty well built, are difficult to cut and have decent anti pick security.