Barry "The Key" Wels picks locks for the sport of it, but also to make a broader point. He fiddles with tumblers and cracks safes for fun, and to alert the security industry to the weaknesses of many locks, which serve as a bulwark of our physical safety. Locks, whether keyed or combination, melt like butter in his hands.
Lock pickers, safecrackers and computer hackers often bond on the Internet, sharing tips and exposing "vulnerabilities." The fraternity of security violators surfaced at a rare meeting of the U.S. computer underground in New York recently that drew 2,000 Internet enthusiasts and security professionals.
"It's real easy, it's real addictive ... to open a lock in two or three pops," said The Key, who is also an active computer hacker and cryptology buff.
He's just one of the scores of speakers to spill in intimate detail about how one can beat the security systems found on computers, networks, telephones, radios, encryption, office security cards, keypads as well as doors and bank safes.
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