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Comment by throwaway2016a | Hacker News Reader

throwaway2016a

Whenever they tell me my smart lock can be hacked I respond... "yeah, and someone can also just take a brick, smash my window, and go through that way."

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You'll notice the broken window. Your insurance will see the evidence and pay up. Much harder to prove somebody messed with a smart lock.

Security works best in layers.

My origional comment might be a bit simplistic because In my case in order to not be caught they would have to hack not just my lock but also have to hack my security system network (separate from my home Wifi) and disable the alarms and camera.

But you're right not everyone has layers.

Although one could argue a traditional non-smart lock is not hard to "hack" and leave no evidence either.

Think about this: What if unsafe web-based locks become more prevalent? What if someone builds a "brick smashing service"? Install the app and run it while driving through $neighborhood until a device is detected. The app comes with filters and only shows locks that haven't been unlocked in the last three days. It shows you the probability of 'someone is home'. You press the 'unlock' button, pay $some_amount in bitcoins and the service unlocks it for you.

Can you see our point now?

But a malicious person in Guatemala would have to first fly to wherever you live, then throw a brick individually through each window they wanted to break. With smart locks, that same individual can throw tens of thousands of bricks through tens of thousands of windows without even leaving their desk.

But what good does that do if they can't then walk through the door?

Also, most smart door locks are operated over a protocol called ZWave which has a limited range. When people talk about smart lock hacking they are usually talking about RF spoofing of the ZWave signal. You can, of course, hack the bridge device if the bridge device is on Wifi.

Uber, but for hackers in remote parts of the world to connect with someone who will go into the building who's smart lock was just hacked and steal the stuff.

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