It seems like moments after a manufacturer releases a new security lock for mobile computers and similar devices, a hacker demonstrates how pitifully easy it is to defeat it. The latest security breach comes courtesy of Engadget and their new The Lockdown column, exploring high-tech security issues. It took the column’s author, Marc Weber Tobias, literally seconds to defeat the new Targus Defcon CL lock, using metal from a beer can.
Ironically, this test was prompted after a call from a St. Paul Pioneer Press tech journalist. He was the same reporter who wrote a detailed story on shoddy laptop locks in 2004. Two years later, doesn’t look like much has changed.