Skip to content

Exploiting Key Space Vulnerabilities in the Physical World (Presentation)

Bill Graydon

Bill Graydon demonstrates applying information theory and entropy reduction to derive physical building master keys from partial impressions.

Summary

Information Theory in Physical Master Key Systems

Pin-tumbler master key systems rely on geometric key bittings to balance user access, but mathematical relationships between keys leak entropy about the system architecture.

Applying Entropy and Key Space Cryptanalysis

Bill Graydon demonstrates how comparing just a few employee office keys allows calculating the exact bitting parameters of the building master key without picking a single lock.

Impressioning and Decoding Pin Stacks

Combining physical lock impressioning techniques with information-theoretic reduction algorithms drastically reduces the search space needed to cut a functional master key.

Designing Secure Master Key Hierarchies

Graydon presents defensive key management guidelines and mathematical validation models for locksmiths and physical security engineers to eliminate key space leakage.

Related talks