Samy Kamkar, a security researcher, hacked a Mattel toy to scan every possible garage door opener combination and open them in seconds. No need to panic and unplug your operator though. It only works on fixed code receivers and the hacker would also need to know what frequency the receiver was.
If your operator is from approximately 1995 to present then you most likely don't have a fixed code receiver on your opener. Check yours by opening the battery compartment on your remote. If you see DIP switches (that can be moved to + or -) then you have a fixed code otherwise you don't. Operators made over the past 20 years have used a rolling code type of security so this hacked toy would not work on them.
Fixed code was mostly used in the 1970's and 1980's but is still in use today on thousands of garage door openers. I wouldn't be too worried though since Kamkar disabled the code used to hack the toy so someone couldn't copy it. The hacker would also need to know if your garage door opener had a fixed code receiver and the frequency of the receiver.
It's an interesting story and good to be aware of but not something anyone should panic over. There's one way burglars get into garages more than any other way...people leave the garage door open! So if you really want to be safe then close the garage door. Even if you are just working in the yard or in the house it only takes a dishonest person seconds to steal your stuff. If you do have a fixed code receiver on your operator and you're still worried about it then either buy a new garage door operator or upgrade the radio receiver & remote with a secure rolling code receiver like the Liftmaster 365LM Receiver and 371LM Remote.
Click Here to read the full story on Wired.com
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