Lock & Key!
So there can only be a finite number of lock and key combinations in the whole world so does that mean a key from like Stratford, London, can open a door of somewhere is Los Angeles or New England or Budapest or something? Like why is no one acknowledging this, I don't get it? What is done to prevent this?
Original post by stmkcltrs
So there can only be a finite number of lock and key combinations in the whole world so does that mean a key from like Stratford, London, can open a door of somewhere is Los Angeles or New England or Budapest or something? Like why is no one acknowledging this, I don't get it? What is done to prevent this?
Correct. The number of different key shapes is not infinite.
The reason for "no one acknowledging this" is because it doesn't really matter. Suppose there are 100,000 possible keys. To make use of that information, and unlock a door you shouldn't have access to, you'd have to carry around 100,000 keys with you, and then try each of them - one by one. That's not really a practical proposition.
Original post by stmkcltrs
Hmm yes but what about on the basis of you just impulsively trying one door on the same street as you and it works like what happens...I know it is very unlikely but still...I don't know what to do with this information
Well, there's a chance (albeit a very small chance) that if you try to unlock a neighbour's door with your key that it'll work. I don't suggest you get into the habit of trying it though!
If you're worried about the security of your own door, then just make sure it has two locks. (Most do anyway, in my experience.) The chances of someone randomly having keys which fit both locks is a extremely low.
You are not the first person to think of this. Mechanical keys have been around for centuries. Lock makers unsurprisingly have learned a thing or two in that time.
There are nowhere near as many as 100k different combinations on a standard key. For things like the Yale and Chubb locks that most people have, you're talking about 5 positions on a key with 5 different depths on them. A lot of combinations just aren't mechanically sound (like very deep cuts next to very shallow ones) so I'd hazard that there are about 2000 - 2500 differnt viable combos. Whilst not impossible, you could theoretically cut youself every single combo - which would weigh an absolute ton and try them all one after the other. Best case scenario, you're talking about 3 hours standing there trying keys on a door - assuming that there is only one lock on the door.
What really changes things up is that not all keys fit all locks, and keys vary wildly. Whilst Yale cylinders are certainly very popular, so are Union and Era locks. To the untrained eye, they look the same - but one key will not fit into the keyway of another. There's a slightly more secure brand called Ingersoll, which has three different sections of double bitted keys, none of which fit one another. When you next walk past a key cutting place, look how many keys there are hanging up behind the counter - that's only a small selection of what actually exists. A lot of locks fitted by locksmiths and security companies have unique profiles, only available to them. Some high-security keys have different mechanisms allowing for tens of thousands of different combinations. There's a brand called Kaba that uses perpendicular holes drilled directly on to a flat key - and up to 26 different rows of pins in varying angles and with multiple pin depths, you'd be talking about a number of viable combinations in the n^20 power. Security keys are also not commercially available - so you wouldn't be able to buy the blanks easily and it would take you longer than the lifespan of the universe to cut them, let alone try them on a door. I also doubt that there is enough matter in the universe to make that many keys. Such keys also have active components on them (moving parts in the key itself) to prevent copying via 3D printing.
Having said all that - certain types of keys - Union 2 and 3 lever keys that you usually find on old-fashioned internal doors; only have a 50-200 differs at most, and its not unusual for caretakers or locksmiths to have large rings with all the different keys on them and if a key gets lost, that's probably the quickest way to get the door open.
There are nowhere near as many as 100k different combinations on a standard key. For things like the Yale and Chubb locks that most people have, you're talking about 5 positions on a key with 5 different depths on them. A lot of combinations just aren't mechanically sound (like very deep cuts next to very shallow ones) so I'd hazard that there are about 2000 - 2500 differnt viable combos. Whilst not impossible, you could theoretically cut youself every single combo - which would weigh an absolute ton and try them all one after the other. Best case scenario, you're talking about 3 hours standing there trying keys on a door - assuming that there is only one lock on the door.
What really changes things up is that not all keys fit all locks, and keys vary wildly. Whilst Yale cylinders are certainly very popular, so are Union and Era locks. To the untrained eye, they look the same - but one key will not fit into the keyway of another. There's a slightly more secure brand called Ingersoll, which has three different sections of double bitted keys, none of which fit one another. When you next walk past a key cutting place, look how many keys there are hanging up behind the counter - that's only a small selection of what actually exists. A lot of locks fitted by locksmiths and security companies have unique profiles, only available to them. Some high-security keys have different mechanisms allowing for tens of thousands of different combinations. There's a brand called Kaba that uses perpendicular holes drilled directly on to a flat key - and up to 26 different rows of pins in varying angles and with multiple pin depths, you'd be talking about a number of viable combinations in the n^20 power. Security keys are also not commercially available - so you wouldn't be able to buy the blanks easily and it would take you longer than the lifespan of the universe to cut them, let alone try them on a door. I also doubt that there is enough matter in the universe to make that many keys. Such keys also have active components on them (moving parts in the key itself) to prevent copying via 3D printing.
Having said all that - certain types of keys - Union 2 and 3 lever keys that you usually find on old-fashioned internal doors; only have a 50-200 differs at most, and its not unusual for caretakers or locksmiths to have large rings with all the different keys on them and if a key gets lost, that's probably the quickest way to get the door open.
Original post by stmkcltrs
Hmm yes but what about on the basis of you just impulsively trying one door on the same street as you and it works like what happens...I know it is very unlikely but still...I don't know what to do with this information
This is known as attempted burglary.
Original post by Trinculo
This is known as attempted burglary.
As Trinculo says, all locks are definitely not equal, and the higher security they get the less and less chance anything else will work in them, the internals start getting very complex so a 'similar' key hasn't a chance even though they look essentially the same from the outside
What you describe would likely only work in v cheap series of locks or locks that are very old and worn. Realistically if you took a key and just started trying everyone's doors you'd get confronted/arrested/harmed long before you opened a door.
I carry a small set of fire brigade keys for work, as above these will only really open simple close and internal locks, they've v little chance to open anything more complex.
What you describe would likely only work in v cheap series of locks or locks that are very old and worn. Realistically if you took a key and just started trying everyone's doors you'd get confronted/arrested/harmed long before you opened a door.
I carry a small set of fire brigade keys for work, as above these will only really open simple close and internal locks, they've v little chance to open anything more complex.
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