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#deviantollam#elevatorsecurity#physicalsecurity

Elevator Hacking: From the Pit to the Penthouse

DeviantOllam

190K subscribers • 2 videos on Hallway

YouTube
  • Recommended by 9 people: 9 on Hacker News.
  • A classic. People kept recommending it from 2016 to 2026.
  • Presented by Deviant Ollam, physical security specialist

Beginner. No background in the topic needed.

889K views12 years ago9 recommendations

SecurityExploits and vulnerabilities

Deviant Ollam explains the mechanical and electronic inner workings of elevators and how physical penetration testers exploit their security vulnerabilities.

Throughout the history of hacker culture, elevators have played a key role. From the mystique of students at MIT taking late-night rides upon car tops (don't do that, please!) to the work of modern pen testers who use elevators to bypass building security systems (it's easier than you think!) these devices are often misunderstood and their full range of features and abilities go unexplored. This talk will be an in-depth explanation of how elevators work... allowing for greater understanding, system optimizing, and the subversion of security in many facilities. Those who attend will learn why an elevator is virtually no different than an unlocked staircase as far as building security is concerned! While paying the bills as a security auditor and penetration testing consultant with his company, The CORE Group, Deviant Ollam is also member of the Board of Directors of the US division of TOOOL, The Open Organisation Of Lockpickers. Deviant runs the Lockpicking Village with TOOOL at HOPE, DEFCON, ShmooCon, etc, and he has conducted physical security training sessions for Black Hat, DeepSec, ToorCon, HackCon, ShakaCon, HackInTheBox, ekoparty, AusCERT, GovCERT, CONFidence, the United States Military Academy at West Point, and the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis. His favorite Amendments to the US Constitution are, in no particular order, the 1st, 2nd, 9th, & 10th. Howard Payne is an elevator consultant from New York specializing in code compliance and accident investigations. He has logged over 9,000 hours examining car-tops, motor rooms, and hoistways in cases ranging from minor injuries to highly-publicized fatalities, and has contributed to forensic investigations that have been recognized by local, State, and Federal courts. Howard has appeared on national broadcast television making elevators do things they never should. When he's not riding up and down high-rise hoistways, he moonlights as a drum and bass DJ and semi-professional gambler. His favorite direction is Up and his favorite elevator feature is riot mode.

Why it's here

9 people recommend this

What people say. Highly recommended as an incredibly entertaining and detailed deep dive into physical security and elevator mechanics.

_asummerson Hacker News • Recommends

On “Mosh: the mobile shell”

And watch this0 entire (super entertaining) talk from Hope X about elevator security. You get a pretty good feal for how the safety measures work after watching it. 0 link to this video

unixheroon Hacker News • Recommends

On “Ask HN: What talks or videos do you suggest to watch on a long flight?”

Yes. That's the shorter censored versoion. I recommend the full 2 hour version, with all the secrets: link to this video My second favourite talk: You spent all that money and your still got owned: link I even watch these again and again.

thejenkon Hacker News • Recommends

On “I'll Let Myself In: Tactics of Physical Pen Testers (2017) [video]”

Deviant Ollam does another talk with elevator consultant Howard Payne just about elevator security which is fantastic. It's very similar to this one, but goes deeper into the single subject. There are a few versions on YouTube of various lengths, but here's the 2 hour version: link to this video

royjacobson Hacker News • Recommends

On “List of Special Elevator Modes”

If you're interested in elevators and the hacking thereof I would also highly recommend this talk: link to this video

mpdon Hacker News • Recommends

On “List of Special Elevator Modes”

I ran into link to this video (Elevator Hacking: From the Pit to the Penthouse) awhile back, and it was so interesting to me that I ended up watching the entire 2 hours in one sitting.

nhhvhyon Hacker News • Recommends

On “Elevators”

If you feel like going down an elevator rabbithole, Deviant Ollam has quite a few talks/videos about all sorts of niche elevator stuff. My personal favorite: link to this video

lathiaton Hacker News • Recommends

On “Ask HN: Best talks of 2018?”

Deviant Ollam - The Hotel Room Gourmet link Also not 2018 but his elevator with Howard Payne talk: link (1h version) link to this video (2h version) And the search for the perfect door: link

wolrahon Hacker News • Recommends

On “Elevator Saga – An elevator programming game”

Relevant video discussing fire keys and other common keys: link And since this thread is about elevators, I have to also mention another video of theirs: link to this video

ben_baion Hacker News • Recommends

On “List of Special Elevator Modes”

SimTower started as elevator simulator, and was then turned into a game. Also, this is a great talk if you want to know more about elevators: link to this video

maqron Hacker News • Mentions

On “Rappelling Off a Roof”

> After a week of recon I found out that the 4th and 5th floors are only accessible with a very specific card via the elevator. I didn’t have that card. Even if I get to the elevator I could not go to the 5th floor See link to this video

eatkinsonon Hacker News • Mentions

On “In one single image, mainstream media show their utter ignorance of security”

I don't know about subways, but elevators should never be a part of a building's security because they're so easy to hack1. 1: link to this video

djsumdogon Hacker News • Mentions

On “Can Repelling Magnets Replace the Spring in a Pogo Stick?”

There was an elevator hacking talk that went into the buffers at the bottom of the elevator. You may have seen them in elevators that have glass on the outside of the shaft like in malls and hotels. The elevator never rests on those. Those are to take the impact of an elevator that crashes. Inspectors will often test the buffers as well as part of routine maintenance: link to this video

alanfalconon Hacker News • Mentions

On “Why did moving the mouse cursor cause Windows 95 to run more quickly?”

It is perhaps more appropriate to say the button frequently does nothing because you frequently lack the proper permissions... link to this video