[IceEnclosure]

This dude's got a thumbprint ID on his front door. My thumb didn't work, and it beeped, so I dipped.

Dope.

[Mac Write]

Extremely easy to defeat. I could get past this one in about oh say 10 seconds. All you need to do is put some plastic over it then press it and the other persons finger print will still be on the scanner and you will be let in. a roller thumb scanner on the other hand is much harder to get past.

[torsoboy]

Originally Posted by Mac Write 

Extremely easy to defeat. I could get past this one in about oh say 10 seconds. All you need to do is put some plastic over it then press it and the other persons finger print will still be on the scanner and you will be let in. a roller thumb scanner on the other hand is much harder to get past.

Riiiiight. I think you've been watching too many james bond movies.

[Dark Helmet]

Originally Posted by torsoboy 

Riiiiight. I think you've been watching too many james bond movies.

No it is true. Years ago someone demo'd they could even do it using gummie bears.

[Mac Write]

Actually it was on Call For Help over the last year. I don't make statements like this from watching movies. I base my stuff on facts.

[IceEnclosure]

I believe there's an integrated number pad as well under the aluminum looking door thing.

[Dark Helmet]

Originally Posted by IceEnclosure 

I believe there's an integrated number pad as well under the aluminum looking door thing.

That's just for back up. Either way a number is more secure but finger print is cooler and perhaps faster.

[Mac Write]

Since your fingerprint residue is still on the thumb scanner, that's what makes it really easily to defeat.

[IceEnclosure]

either way, you gotta swip a key fob to enter the building, and again to access this floor from the elevator.

a sledgehammer would work on the door too.

[demograph68]

Mythbusted!

[IceEnclosure]

Same amount of time and dedication to breaking that as picking a lock.

Still, I wouldn't have it on a door that the general public could access.

[olePigeon]

Originally Posted by demograph68 

Mythbusted!

Sillypuddy works, too. We tried it on my friend's thumbprint scanner on his laptop.

Now I'm anxious to try it on my dad's roller scanner on his Thinkpad.

[Uncle Skeleton]

Originally Posted by IceEnclosure 

This dude's got a thumbprint ID on his front door. My thumb didn't work, and it beeped, so I dipped.

Dope.

What does "I dipped" mean?

Anyway, I got one of these for my door last year (a different model, one that doesn't shine blue lights at you). All I do is wipe the scanner clean with my thumb while I'm waiting for it to analyze my print. I figure if someone is willing to track me down and make a mold of my fingerprint, they're going to get in either way (sledgehammer? crowbar? smash a window?). But in the mean time, I don't have to bring my keys around everywhere (plus my g/f loses keys about once a month). And if they show up at my door by chance, they're not going to be xeroxing my thumb or any of the other things the mythbusters tried.

And I don't think it's valid to say stealing someone's print is "breaking" the lock, any more than stealing someone's key (and copying it) is thought of as breaking a conventional lock.

[Peter]

they can just get a putty and place it over the scanner and it reads your previous print.

[::maroma::]

Originally Posted by Uncle Skeleton 

What does "I dipped" mean?

It means he got the hell outta there.

And I don't care what sort of fancy lock you put on your door, I put a little bit of C4 on there and I waltz right in.

[Uncle Skeleton]

Originally Posted by Peter 

they can just get a putty and place it over the scanner and it reads your previous print.

"All I do is wipe the scanner clean with my thumb while I'm waiting for it to analyze my print."

And I don't care what sort of fancy lock you put on your door, I put a little bit of C4 on there and I waltz right in.

Exactly. Anyone who comes prepared (fake fingers made from ballistics jelly, recon about who's finger opens which door, their good blue crowbar, explosives, whatever) is not the kind of person anyone's consumer deadbolt is going to keep out.

[olePigeon]

Originally Posted by ::maroma:: 

It means he got the hell outta there.

And I don't care what sort of fancy lock you put on your door, I put a little bit of C4 on there and I waltz right in.

A portable ram might be cheaper and easier to get.

[kc311v2]

A lock only keeps the honest people out.

[Uncle Skeleton]

And the lazy people

[Peter]

except using the putty shows no sign of forced entry

[demograph68]

Originally Posted by olePigeon 

A portable ram might be cheaper and easier to get.

If you want to trigger the alarms.

[Uncle Skeleton]

Originally Posted by Peter 

except using the putty shows no sign of forced entry

The putty trick only works on people who are stupid enough to leave their print on the scanner. Why do you keep bringing it up?

[Peter]

Having to wipe the scanner surely adds an additional action, one I'd be pretty pissed with if I'd just plunked down multiple hundred $$ for a device to make my life easier.
and yeah, it'd just bother me if such a simple device could allow entry -- and not even trigger any alarms.

[IceEnclosure]

Originally Posted by Peter 

Having to wipe the scanner surely adds an additional action, one I'd be pretty pissed with if I'd just plunked down multiple hundred $$ for a device to make my life easier.
and yeah, it'd just bother me if such a simple device could allow entry -- and not even trigger any alarms.

I'd buy a lock like this if I lived in a secure building as well. Cameras in all elevators and stairways, key fob scanners to get on particular floors, and thumbprint to get in my crib.

Wiping it clean while processing my print sounds fantastic. I'd like one.

Uncle Skeleton has it right. And yea, "to dip" is "to leave". Unless you've got tobacco in your mouth. Or you're dancing. Or you're gonna get in the pool. In which case you'd be "taking a dip".

[CollinG3G4]

Originally Posted by torsoboy 

Riiiiight. I think you've been watching too many james bond movies.

You mean Drop Zone with Wesley Snipes.

[Dark Helmet]

How long does it take to scan your thumb and unlock the door?

[©öñFü$íóÑ]

nah... my idea's slightly better..... have a complete hand scanner..... scan the prints on all 5 fingers....... including the palm-print.............. AND check for a pulse, the -EXACT- placement of the veins, AND the exact physical location of the vein from where the pulse is emmanating.

That way, if somebody tried to kill you and use your hand-print to get in, it won't work unless it senses that you're alive. Of course, if you were at gunpoint and are scared to death, well.... that's another story.......

[Uncle Skeleton]

It takes aobut a second on mine to scan. The time is longer the more prints you have in there (authorized). I got the $275 one from smarthome.

Wiping is no trouble at all. You just slide your thumb down to the bottom instead of lifting it up when you're finished. There's more than enough time to do it while you're waiting the 1 second for it to ID your print.

I would worry about it checking vitals, because they change when you're scared/cold/tired/etc.

FYI my building has a key fob to get in, but not per floor, and cameras on a DVR, but not in elevators.

[Eug Wanker]

What happens if you cut your thumb? Does the fingerprint lock still work? I wonder what people have against just buying a proper key lock in the first place.

P.S. In my apt. building (when I lived in one), not a single lock was ever picked. If someone wanted to rob a unit, they just kicked the door in or used a crowbar or something.

[Uncle Skeleton]

My unit actually was robbed just after I moved in, that's what prompted me to change the lock. There was no sign of forced entry there, and all he took was my roommate's purse, then ditched it when he found no cash in it. So anyway, either he climbed in the window, carefully not moving any of the mess inside, then carefully replaced the window and screen, or he picked the lock, or the lock was left unlocked (roomate was out jogging at the time). Both the second two options are taken care of by the new system, and on top of that it's more convenient for me not to carry keys around to get lost.

[mitchell_pgh]

I like key pads. I think the thumb print idea is too nerdy.

It's also nice if you need to have a friend/family member enter your place. "Oh, just stop in, the key code is 1234" and you can change it when your home.

[alligator]

First, not all fingerprint readers can be fooled the way it was described above. Second, batteries eventually die. How'd you like to be locked out because you forgot to change your batteries?

[Uncle Skeleton]

I considered a key pad as well, but my building manager has to be able to open it in an emergency. I trust her, but I can't have her writing down the code for it to be compromised.

The lock is supposed to beep when the batteries are low. If they die (or it breaks), there is a mechanical override key. Other models have contacts on the outside for a 9V battery in case you get stuck outside when the batteries die.