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Comment by Quequau | Hacker News Reader

I feel like this comment comes up every time LPL is discussed outside of his context and I think it discounts the hundreds of low / no skill attacks he has demonstrated which apply to many, probably most, of the locks with recognisable name brands that are for sale in brick & mortar stores.

It took me 30 minutes to make and use a tool that he demonstrated using on a lock similar to one I own and most of that time was spent rummaging around my place trying find stuff.

Lastly, I think you got taken advantage of by a locksmith out to sell more locks and keys.

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The biggest part of the LPL skillset is his knowledge about all the low-skill attacks that exist, and which locks they work on. Low-skill attacks are only effective if you know about them, and remember which locks each exploit applies to.

The only low-skill attack that seems to have any widespread effectiveness (and would therefore be worth trying on every lock) is raking, and that is pretty easily defeated by any lockmaker who cares.

I believe that "low skilled attack" also includes the ability to search the internet and watch a video. There are literally thousands of videos on YouTube with demonstrations of low skilled attacks using improvised tools.

For example I made a shim and opened a lock I own in less than 30 minutes after watching one of his videos that featured a similar lock. I had never opened a lock without a key before that day, don't have much use of two fingers on one hand, and my toolbox fits in a kitchen drawer.

For your list of common low skill attacks which have widespread effectiveness I would also include shimming, hammering, and cutting. Also in the case of locks with electronics associated with them, strong magnets.

He is also a very skilled SPPer which he will frequently demonstrate. He mentioned in the video the reason he uses so many low skill attacks is because they work so well on locks people *care* about.

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