Apartment intercom hacked with Matter-enabled ESP32 after landlord neglect

Frank's apartment complex intercom became useless when management failed to renew cellular service, prompting a creative fix by friends who bypassed the broken system entirely. After exploring router hacking and signal spoofing, they discovered direct access to the solenoid control wire in a junction box, enabling a more elegant solution.

The team deployed a Matter-compatible ESP32 microcontroller programmed in Rust that could unlock Frank's gate from Apple Home. By splitting the solenoid wire and connecting it to a relay board, they created a discreet workaround that maintains system security while adding smart home functionality.

Development challenges included ESP32 memory constraints when running both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth stacks simultaneously. The team solved this by enabling only one radio at a time, ensuring stable operation. The final implementation appears in Frank's Apple Home as a standard lock device, demonstrating how consumer-grade hardware can solve complex building access problems without requiring landlord cooperation.