{"id":2940,"date":"2014-09-03T02:16:56","date_gmt":"2014-09-03T06:16:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mysecuritysign.com\/blog\/?p=2940"},"modified":"2019-10-04T00:43:08","modified_gmt":"2019-10-04T04:43:08","slug":"3d-printed-bump-keys","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mysecuritysign.com/blog\/3d-printed-bump-keys\/","title":{"rendered":"These 3D-printed bump keys can pick any lock"},"content":{"rendered":"

Your valuables may not be safe anymore\u2014not even if you keep your key safe. German engineers Jos Weyers and Christian Holler<\/a> have found a way of making skeleton keys without even seeing the original key.<\/p>\n

\"3D-printed<\/a>

From Weyers<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

They’ve put a new spin on an old technique: bumping. Traditionally, lockpickers have bumped key blanks in a lock using a hammer to tap the key. This makes the key blank\u2019s teeth bump against the lock cylinder\u2019s pins. This in turn, makes the pins jump. If done in the right manner, the technique can successfully open a lock.<\/p>\n

Till now, high-security lock manufacturers would patent their key blanks. They considered their restricted key shapes or profiles secure. Just a few verified clients could access them. They might have to rethink their strategy. \u201cIt\u2019s a kind of false sense of security,\u201d says<\/a> Holler. \u201cIf a protected profile is your only protection, you should be aware that\u2019s no longer enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

Weyers and Holler use a 3D printer and software called Photobump to make a 3D model of the key. The two only need a few easily available details about the lock. These include a photo of the keyway or pathway of the lock or the pins\u2019 position on the key blank of the lock. \u201cBasically, if I can see your keyhole, there\u2019s an app for that,\u201d says Weyers.<\/p>\n

Even the cost of a 3D printer is no deterrent. You can order a skeleton key to be mailed to you via a 3D printing service like Shapeways or i.Materialise.<\/p>\n