Awesome Lockpicking
A curated list of awesome guides, tools, and other resources relating to the security and compromise of locks, safes, and keys.
Lock picking is the art of opening a lock without the key and without damaging or destroying the lock or its door. If you want to contribute, you are highly encouraged to do so. Please read the contribution guidelines.
Contents
- Books
- Contests, conferences, and events
- Hobby projects
- How-to lockpicking guides
- Locksport associations and organizations
- Novel lock attack techniques and research
- Online communities
- Online resources
- Vendors
Books
- Eddie the Wire books
- Expedient B and E: Tactics and Techniques for Bypassing Alarms and Defeating Locks - Carl Hammer
- Keys to the Kingdom by Deviant Ollam, 2012
- Lock Picking: Detail Overkill by Solomon
- Locks, Safes and Security: An International Police Reference - Information on locks, safes and security by Marc Weber Tobias.
- Practical Lock Picking by Deviant Ollam, 2012
- Practical Lock Picking: A Physical Penetration Tester's Training Guide - Detailed instructions and exercises designed for professional physical security specialists, consultants, and red teams.
- The Use of Locks in Physical Crime Prevention - James M Edgar and William D Mclnerey
Contests, conferences, and events
- Chaos Communications Congress (CCC) - CCC hosts the German Lockpicking Championships.
- DEF CON - Annual infosec industry conference which is popular with many lockpickers featuring a locksport contest.
- Hackers On Planet Earth (HOPE) - Annual conference often featuring a locksport competition and presentations on physical security.
- OzSecCon - Open community event focusing on physical security in Australia, which hosts a lockpicking and handcuff evasion competition.
- LockCon - Annual, invitation-only international conference about locks for members of respected locksport organizations.
Hobby projects
- 3D Printed Lock Picks - Print lock picks made of plastic materials that, while weak, will survive at least several uses. (Find more digital models.)
- DIY Lock Pick Set from a Windshield Wiper - Illustrated guide to building a custom lock pick and tension wrench from windshield wipers.
- How to Make a Set of Lockpicks! (using street sweeper bristles) - Instructions for using discarded street sweeper bristles as material for dual-sided turning tools and picks.
- Making Tension Wrenches/Turning Tools From Old Windshield Wiper Blades - Instructions for turning old windshield wipers into any of a variety of lock pick types and turning tool styles.
- Under Door Tool Kit Instructions - Short guide to constructing an under-door ("lever opening"/"Mule") tool using material available at a typical hardware store.
- Lock Dice - In this dice-based locksport game, as a budding lock maker you have set out to test your designs against your peers.
How-to lockpicking guides
- Art of Lockpicking - Educational website with animations detailing the process of picking locks.
- Beginner's Guide to Security Pins - Short article guiding beginners comfortable with picking padlocks towards an understanding of more complex locks.