In the previous blog we spoke about a widespread concern for those who would like to buy an electronic safe: not being able to open it when the batteries are flat.
Today we are summarising 5 important reasons why it is worth carefully selecting the product that will safeguard our valuables, our money and our confidential documents by investing in a good quality safe.

1. As we have seen, in order to avoid the unpleasant situation where the batteries still seem to be charged and, just a few days later, the safe will no longer open, it is best not to buy low-cost products imported from the Far East as the electronics of these products generally only detect when the battery is completely flat.
   A good quality safe will warn you well in advance when the batteries are about to run out (e.g. the Viro electronic cards start to notify the user about 500 operations before the batteries are completely flat), allowing them to be replaced and avoiding unpleasant surprises.
   
2. However, whilst the existence of a key (and therefore of a lock for emergency opening), in case we did not actually replace the batteries in the safe, can on the one hand be convenient, it can also pose a potential security risk. In fact, the lock present can become one of the points that a thief can exploit to open the safe. The problem is obviously reduced if you make sure you have chosen a product with a secure lock, possibly fitted with anti-drill and pull-resistant protection devices.
3. A possible additional security issue that may arise if you decide to buy a safe with emergency key opening is that a burglar may be able to obtain an illegal copy of it. It is therefore very useful if the emergency keys for the safes only use a patented controlled key-cutting profile,so that they can only be copied at authorised centres (or, better still, only by the manufacturer) and only after presenting the coded ownership card, if necessary accompanied by the original key and/or showing the owner’s identity document.
   

   The Viro Privacy safe is also available with a cylinder protected against breaking and drilling) for emergency opening and a patented profile key, which can only be copied by Viro.

4. The display in an electronic safe can be very useful: it can provide information such as the remaining battery life, the operations log, reminders or even, as in the case of some Viro models, the internal temperature and humidity.
   However, many cheap products are equipped with displays that do not have any rear protection and can therefore be knocked in by the thieves, to create a space from which to access the safe mechanism; in addition, such displays for low cost safes are often able to show only the code entered. This service is of limited use and is not worth the increased risks from a security point of view.
5. Last, but not least, there is the “thickness factor”. Considering equivalent construction features, a securely built-in wall safe is generally safer than a free standing safe (fixed in a piece of furniture), as it is more difficult to remove or attack. When it is not possible to install a wall safe, there is no other choice than to select a free standing model, as long as it satisfies certain requirements, such as having a sufficient case thickness to withstanding cutting and break-in tools. Unfortunately, the case thickness of the majority of cheap free standing versions imported from the Far East is only a 1.5 mm, that is to say, too thin to offer any real security.

See the range of Viro safes