Smart locks are installed in homes for security. They are secure locks that prevent access to the building or other parts of the home until the accurate command is received and processed. Smart locks are connected to control panels or smartphones via the internet or a smart home hub. This is how the homeowner sends commands to the device.
There have been debates about the safety of smart locks. Considering these smart devices depend on internet connectivity to function, users have expressed worry that smart home locks can be compromised by hackers.
While this threat cannot be ruled out entirely, there are ways to lower the risks and get more value from using smart home locks.
Are Smart Locks Safe?
Using smart locks
There are many options to use smart locks. Many of these products also offer additional protective functions to prevent the system from being compromised. Some of the usage and secure options smart home lock owners can choose are as follows;
Biometrics for smart home locks
The use of biometrics for smart home locks is a common feature. Operating smart home locks with your biometrics is a simple process. You can choose to register any of your fingers to use the fingerprint authentication option.
Biometrics can also be integrated into the smart home lock system as voice commands. With the use of smart voice assistants such as Alexa or Google Assistant, you can activate or deactivate smart home locks by issuing a voice command.
To an extent, the use of biometrics for smart home locks offers a comfortable level of protection. Your biometric features are unique and cannot be copied easily. It will take an extremely elaborate and expensive process to clone your biometrics. This factor alone reduces the chances of experiencing a compromise.
However, the manufacturers of smart home locks also have a huge role to play. They need to ensure the software used for the biometric systems are impenetrable to protect their customers.
Passwords for smart home locks
Passwords remain one of the strongest and reliable methods of securing smart home locks. Many brands of these products come with control panels that feature keypads with numbers. You can choose a combination of numbers to secure your smart home lock.
The keypad control options which allow you to set numeric passwords can also be used in combination with other smart control methods such as voice commands or the smart home lock mobile app. You can control your smart home lock even when you are not with your smartphone at that time. Passwords should never be shared with anyone outside your family for safety reasons. Fortunately, you can control smart home locks remotely, so there is no need to share passwords with friends and family who come visiting when you are not at home.
It will help if you find out ways to create strong passwords that are difficult to hack. You can find tips on increasing password strength online or be creative. It is also a great idea to change your passwords often.
Two-step authentication for smart home locks
All the features of your smart home locks can be used via the mobile app on your smartphone. This also means that anyone who can have access to your smartphone can open and gain unauthorized access to your home. In this regard, the two-step authentication is helpful.
Two-step authentication means you can use the smart home lock only after accurately entering a secret code to pass two security phases. You can choose to use biometrics and a password for your two-step authentication process.
Regarding smartphones, you can set the fingerprint scanner and the use of a password as the security authentication before accessing the mobile app. This extra security feature can also be added to the control panel of your smart home lock.
Manufacturers guarantee
In the packaging for smart home locks, you should look for the guarantee and its conditions. Manufacturers of smart home locks stand the risk of expensive legal suits when users of their products suffer losses due to negligence on the part of manufacturers.
For this reason, manufacturers of smart products such as the intelligent home locks ensure that high-level encryption is used in programming the software in their products. The use of secure encryption makes it difficult for the system to be hacked by cybercriminals.
Manufacturers also pass the smart home locks through a series of security tests before making them available for purchase in public. The tests done for these products are usually in line with the standards set by affiliated government agencies monitoring the production of consumer goods. Considering the classification of smart home locks as security devices, more checks are done to ensure they are safe.
However, you may want to consider buying smart home locks made by reputable brands because you will find so many products in the market. You can discover these good brands by viewing online comments and reviews from current users of the product.
Regarding smart home locks, quality should never be compromised. You need the best products that are dependable, considering that you will be using your smart locks every day.
Smart Lock Safe or Not?
Proper usage of smart home locks
Another way to lower the risks of smart home locks is by using them according to the guidelines specified by the manufacturer. It is always advised that homeowners should read the user manual before activating and using smart home locks. Alternatively, you should ensure the technician who fixes your smart home lock shows you how to use the device properly.
The chances are that using smart home locks the right way makes it very difficult for the security system to be compromised. So follow the rules.
In conclusion, it is difficult to attribute a 100% safety to any security product, especially devices connected to the internet. Therefore, you need to follow certain steps to ensure your home is safe. Considering the advantages of smart home locks and the tips on increasing safety, it is worth it to have them installed in your smart home.