How to crack any lock in seconds? S&G and SECURAM know the answer.
According to a recent article in 404 Media, US Senator Ron Wyden accused two of the largest manufacturers of locks for commercial safes of creating backdoor codes in some of their products, which could potentially become a threat to national security.
In his letter, Wyden calls on the US government to warn the public about the existence of security vulnerabilities in such products, and that they can be used by foreign agents to steal trade secrets of American companies.
The Chinese company SECURAM and the American company Sargent and Greenleaf (S&G) were named in the letter as manufacturers of locks with a code reset function, which allows you to bypass locks without the owner's consent, simply by specifying a special code word, apparently universal for all models and instances of locks.
If information about this gets into the hands of real intruders, the number of hacks with penetration into large companies will increase significantly. However, after public disclosure, this may happen if companies do not promptly take care of replacing their safes and locks.
Especially disturbing is the fact that the US Department of Defense has long been aware of such vulnerabilities in these products and even managed to ban their use in government sectors of the country, but absolutely did not consider it necessary to inform the public about this.
The letter from Wyden mentions that the documentation on the company's websites directly indicates the possibility of having a "special code" that can be used to access safes. The main criticism from the senator concerns the lack of transparency of companies for end users, because customers are not always notified of the presence of such "hidden functions".
Information security specialist Deviant Ollam believes that such codes may well be used by manufacturers, but insists on the need to fully inform users about the existence of secret access mechanisms.
SECURAM and S&G produce locks for various types of safes, including weapons storage and safe deposit boxes. Both companies confirmed the presence of such codes in some of their products, pointing out their usefulness in certain cases, but also acknowledged that they may be forced to disclose the codes at the legitimate request of the government or in court.
Senator Wyden expresses concern about SECURAM's obligation to follow Chinese laws, which in theory allows the Chinese government to gain access to the safes of American companies. He calls on the National Center for Counterintelligence and Security of the United States to update recommendations for American businesses, warning against using locks with similar functionality.
According to a recent article in 404 Media, US Senator Ron Wyden accused two of the largest manufacturers of locks for commercial safes of creating backdoor codes in some of their products, which could potentially become a threat to national security.
In his letter, Wyden calls on the US government to warn the public about the existence of security vulnerabilities in such products, and that they can be used by foreign agents to steal trade secrets of American companies.
The Chinese company SECURAM and the American company Sargent and Greenleaf (S&G) were named in the letter as manufacturers of locks with a code reset function, which allows you to bypass locks without the owner's consent, simply by specifying a special code word, apparently universal for all models and instances of locks.
If information about this gets into the hands of real intruders, the number of hacks with penetration into large companies will increase significantly. However, after public disclosure, this may happen if companies do not promptly take care of replacing their safes and locks.
Especially disturbing is the fact that the US Department of Defense has long been aware of such vulnerabilities in these products and even managed to ban their use in government sectors of the country, but absolutely did not consider it necessary to inform the public about this.
The letter from Wyden mentions that the documentation on the company's websites directly indicates the possibility of having a "special code" that can be used to access safes. The main criticism from the senator concerns the lack of transparency of companies for end users, because customers are not always notified of the presence of such "hidden functions".
Information security specialist Deviant Ollam believes that such codes may well be used by manufacturers, but insists on the need to fully inform users about the existence of secret access mechanisms.
SECURAM and S&G produce locks for various types of safes, including weapons storage and safe deposit boxes. Both companies confirmed the presence of such codes in some of their products, pointing out their usefulness in certain cases, but also acknowledged that they may be forced to disclose the codes at the legitimate request of the government or in court.
Senator Wyden expresses concern about SECURAM's obligation to follow Chinese laws, which in theory allows the Chinese government to gain access to the safes of American companies. He calls on the National Center for Counterintelligence and Security of the United States to update recommendations for American businesses, warning against using locks with similar functionality.
