Is there a reason why Nathan uses keycards to grant or limit access to the different rooms in the house?

In Ex Machina Nathan is a genius tech innovator. Does it make sense that he would use keycards to limit access to the different rooms of the house and his computer instead of biometrics or a more secure or advanced method?

Best Answer

Yes, to avoid the locks being hackable via the network.

A centralized system using biometrics or other methods could potentially be vulnerable to an AI -- or inquisitive visiting programmer -- that got access to the network. The keycards would simply be high-tech keys with access individually coded into each of the locks.

Plus, it's entirely possible Nathan had a less-than-optimal system installed specifically to help with some sort of manipulation of Caleb, since we eventually learn the whole experiment is a setup.

(From a narrative perspective, forcing Caleb to physically acquire a key card puts him in more peril, and is more visually interesting. As we later learn, stealing the card gave him access to an interface in Nathan's chambers where he was able to revise the security protocols. A fully secure system would have required a more convoluted method for Caleb to turn the tables on Nathan.)

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Why do hotels use keycards?

This streamlines the financial management of the hotel and creates a smoother experience for the hotel guest. Hotel key cards are used with door card readers installed on each door lock and can be programmed to open specific doors in defined time periods.

What do keycards do?

A keycard is a security token that grants you access through electrically-powered doors. These systems require a keycard reader (installed on the door) and you gain access by either tapping your card on the reader (proximity reader), swiping it (swipe reader), or inserting it (insert reader).

What is key card in hotel?

(Hospitality (hotel): Hotel equipment) A key card is a small plastic card which you can use instead of a key to open a door. The electronic key card to her room does not work. Put the key card in the slot outside the door. The room keys are being replaced by electronic key cards.

Do keycards exist?

There are several common types of keycards in use, including the mechanical holecard, barcode, magnetic stripe, Wiegand wire embedded cards, smart card (embedded with a read/write electronic microchip), RFID, and NFC proximity cards. Keycards are frequently used in hotels as an alternative to mechanical keys.

Supraland | Part 4 | KEYCARD ACCESS

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