USB Safe

Want to protect valuable files? or keep sensitive information way from peering eyes? Or you could even attach your keyboard and mouse and lock your computer!

Step 1 Materials and Supplies

Materials needed:

-Exterior PVC Electrical Box w/ one/two 1/2 inch opening
-3 inches of 1/2 inch PVC pipe (if box has 2 openings)
-1/2 inch cap (if box has 2 openings)
-USB extension cable (I bought mine here)
-Keyed Switch (I bought mine here
-USB flash drive* (must be short. I recommend this)
-4 screws
-PVC box cover
-(optional) Expanding Foam

Tools Needed:
-/Hot Glue Gun
-/Drill
-/Soldering Iron and Solder
-/Wire Strippers

*only if your making a "safe." If your making a usb device lock, you do not need this

Comments

[grue]

there's a VERY BIG problem with this idea, from the pictures, the box has a 2 cm hole! so a theif can just yank it out of the hole. and haven't you people heard of an angle grinder? they can cut open the box in less than 5 min just telling you

[mage]

if you just let strangers walk into your house with angle grinders then you have no busniess with safes

[zack247]

and if someone broke into your house with an angle grinder at night, if you don't have home security, i think you will be woken up by the squealing noise that comes from the grinder grinding through your safe. besides, who would go through all that trouble for a flash drive?

[Padlock]

This wasn't supposed to be a actual "safe". Just esthetically. The easiest way is just to insert a blank key, and bump it with a handle while turning. The safest way to store your information would be through software, via encryption.

[mettaurlover]

i'd, for encryption in case of removal, if this would work, intentionally misalign the wires in the extension cord so that they sent reversed signals, ie a "1" sent to the drive will actually be read as a "0" if it is removed from the extension cable. best way to encrypt the things that i know of!

[Padlock]

Hmm... maybe add a NOT gate to each wire...

[struckbyanarrow]

domo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[cooldude375]

instead of using plastic box inside of safe or something like that why dont u just make a metal box to begin with

[mage]

then put it in a safe and weld it shut after drilling a hole in the side and running cat5 through it. then bury it in your backyard where it will remain until the end of time

[Cartuner55]

But time never ends so thats impossible.

[xproplayer]

well then it will last forever

[Cartuner55]

when does forever end? :P just kidding :D

[hbio]

i don't think that this was designed to be super secure. It is just something to discourage people from reading your files. This is still very cool though and this is probably something that i would enjoy making.

[MACKattacksnipe]

Just Finished With a hard drive

[joezero]

I have seen something similar to this made with some differences: It had been built into a cheap fireproof document safe. Insulated pins through the case to ensure fire rating retention and connect drive. Bolted to floor from inside safe. Some remake thoughts: (just thoughts and perhaps not good or safe ones) A destructive backup plan (if I cant have it they cant either) install flash drive in a unplugged copper tube with model rocket engines perhaps. tilt or accelerometer to determine if compromised wind up flash light dynamo to power up the internals a way to make it simplistically proprietary and one-of thus reducing hacking to the skilled only (if it uses four matchbox cars for plugs where you gonna get one of those?) Keep a wood elf with a chain saw in there. he"s gonna be pist when the door opens.

[wcgems]

Cool Idea. I was thinking about seeing if you could find a USB Hub that would allow you to fit several in there at one time. That would be cool.

[Hwolfw]

I think that instead of using the ground on the switch, use the +5 V power to eliminate the "device malfunction" pop up

[Padlock]

the data cables supply their own power

[DavidRobertson]

use a DPDT key switch for power and data ground

[PCfreak]

Usb cable has no data gnd
bcuz its just a comm. line
red=5V+
green=data recive
white=data send
black=GND

[zapro]

Stop saying that stuff, it's WRONG! The green is Data+ and the White is Data-. USB is a bi-directional data bus where the host and slave takes turn on transmitting data over the USB data pair. The Green wire goes positive, when the white goes negative, and vice versa. This system is called "differential signalling" and makes the signal more noise immune.

[PCfreak]

i took a computer class in high school and they told us that the data has no ground but i guess i learned something new thx zapro

[Mighty Mackinac]

so...would be it possible to just put a regular hard drive in it?...just find a sata and power cable long enough to hide it some where... but where you put the lock? power or data?

[Padlock]

Ideally, you would put it on all of the wires. But since most people don't have 4-pull-single-throw key switch, I would just throw it on any essential wire like power or ground. (I'm assuming that your talking about a USB hard drive- If you have a Sata/IDE hard drive set up like that, I imagine the computer wouldn't like the sudden disappearing of a supposedly "internal" hard drive.

[Mighty Mackinac]

well there is a registry edit that can be done to "hide" harddrives that are connected on any port...it might be possible...but you might want to just unmount it before you turn the key...just to be safe...using an eSata might work the best...those are meant to be removed and unmounted from the machine...

[stevenleeblount]

Get a large enough metal box and put a ecternal harddrive in it

[amature engineer]

Cool.

[munchman]

There is really only one word to sum up this project: super-awesome-insanely-cool-I'm-gonna-build-this (It's a real word - look it up) Honestly mate, this is fantastic! Favorited, 4 starred, and going to be made.

[munchman]

Actually, make that 4¹/₂ starred

[MACKattacksnipe]

now im going to try it with a external hard drive

[mage]

yeah, just get a bigger box and wire the usb extension the same way

[rocketman221]

use security screws on the box. that would make it much harder to open because you would need a special screwdriver

[osgeld]

or a hacksaw

[Padlock]

Right now its torn apart. But I thought of maybe using the one-way screws like they use in McDonalds toys

[relay]

you should see the [http://https://www.ironkey.com Iron Key] . it is filled with epoxy and if it detects that you are trying to hack it, it will self destruct. unfortunately I don't think it actually explodes, it would be cool if it did.

[Padlock]

no I wouldn't think it explodes because it says it keeps and encrypted back-up.

[jeymeowmix]

would be awesome though - "wrong password?! OH SHI- -mushroom cloud-

[PCfreak]

thanks for making this instructible but have you tried modding an old floppy drive case? i know i have its way cool

[gamer]

does this work, cause the data pins are connected directly to the 5 volt supplied from usb i dont really get how this is possible, but... i think the best way to do it is to cut only the black wire and put the keyswitch between it, anyways. nice idea! -gamer

[Padlock]

works for me... I do not know if it will work with any other operating system, but I'm guessing it does. By the way I use Windows XP