Top 6 Most Important Security Innovators In History

Security has come a long way since the very first locks were invented. Many people have contributed to the development, design, and manufacturing of interesting, controversial or even classic items that we continue to use to this day. Others have supported or inspired inventors or locksmiths and helped them create improved versions of their own work, sketches or ideas.

While mentioning every single individual who has brought their contribution to improving our security would be a time-consuming process, we can mention six of the most relevant and known figures that have left their mark on us.

#1: Marc Weber Tobias, The Flaw Searcher

Tobias is a contemporary contributor we are going to start our list with. He is mostly known for his obsession with finding flaws in locks that everyone rates as 100% unbreakable. One of the most relevant examples of his work is the research of the Medeco locks and their flaws. His findings proved to be more helpful than he first thought, as the manufacturers of this brand of locks actually addressed the issues Tobias revealed. The way he conducts his worldwide lectures and publicizes the problems he discovers with the locks he assesses is also one of his trademarks. He managed to create a lot of fuss around the topic (especially when it comes to gun locks) and he is also known for his passion for inventing security solutions.

#2: James Sargent, The Gifted Sales Rep Who Invented The Best Safe Combination Dial

You might be familiar with Sargent and Greenleaf and their quality safes or padlocks. Their original name was Yale and Greenleaf and Sargeant were merely their sales rep with a passion for mechanics. He managed to design and create the most reliable safe combination dial of its time. You might have heard of the Magnet Bank Lock. Sargeant continues to create even more security solutions even after he received his success and his locks are some of the most noticeable inventions post the safe combination dial invention.

#3: Henry Robinson Towne Created The Marked For Mass Locks

Linus Yale Jr. associate, founder of Yale and Towne Lock Company and an undeniable lobbyist for a marketplace that would cater to the needs of people interested in security devices, Towne is one of the most popular names in the industry. His work includes the Locks and the Builders Hardware: a Hand Book For Architects book that is extremely helpful for people looking to start a career as a locksmith who is interested in understanding how locks and security worked back in the day. He is also known for having claimed that all locks can be picked while selling his own locks. He wanted everyone to know that there is no such thing as flawless security or perfect locks.

#4: Vivant Denon, The Researcher Of Lost Security Methods

He has a passion for Ancient Egyptian security and he dedicated a great deal of his time studying old locks and lost security solutions. He transcribed ancient Egyptian instructions on making locks and he contributed to the following innovations. He can be considered the earliest security innovator related to security innovation documentation. His organizational skills and attention to detail also propelled him as the first director of the Louvre museum, a job that he received from Napoleon. Denon is also the founding father of Egyptology.

#5: Alfred Charles Hobbs Picked The Brahma Lock

Hobbs is best known for challenging himself to pick the newly improved Brahma lock once he saw it in a shop window together with an engraving that said claiming anyone who could create a tool that could pick the lock or open it would be rewarded with 200 Guineas. He also tested the Chubb lock, even though it was not marketed as an unpickable lock. He had to put some elbow grease into it, as the lock proved to be unpickable.

He also focused on other locks that manufacturers claimed to be unpickable and this was one of the things he was best known for. His most innovative idea was that all locks are pickable – this was happening in 1851 and it gave inventors of his time the boost kick they needed to create improved security solutions.

#6: Linus Yale Jr. Invented The Pin Tumbler Lock

Together with his father, Yale Jr. managed to create the lock and key system most of us are fond of today. He started out with a small lock shop in New York and he soon discovered his passion for manufacturing bank locks. He started lobbying for the introduction of cylinder locks and started his own company after his father's passing. He is also the father of the modern pin-tumbler lock which he designed together with lots of other combination locks for safes.

Without these extraordinary and inspiring men, the security systems and devices we use on a daily basis wouldn't exist and would all be under constant stress and worry about what to do with our houses, cars, and valuables when we are not there to keep an eye on them. So thank you!