YOUR LOCKS ARE NO LONGER SAFE

[the last yatto]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lock_bumping

just saw on the evening news 

[Triple Zero]

technique is a few years old but yeah, it works very well on a lot of locks.

[Corvidia]

We have one at work. In the safe, to which I have easy access. Hmm...

[the last yatto]

the previous most common way was the three sticks which often left the lock loose afterwords
i wonder if this damages the lock in anyway

poll: really real news or fearmongering

[navkat]

I hope the Liberals don't get the webbernet in their tennement buildings. WE DON'T NEED TO TEACH THEM ANYTHING NEW.

[Triple Zero]

the previous most common way was the three sticks which often left the lock loose afterwords
i wonder if this damages the lock in anyway

poll: really real news or fearmongering

as far as I know, it leaves some minor scratches. you can tell if you opened a lock some 10s of times, and perhaps some proper CSI stuff with a microscope might be able to tell after one time.

but in general, apart from applying a bit more force than usual with normal opening, it doesnt leave any real marks to speak of.

[the last yatto]

but in general, apart from applying a bit more force than usual with normal opening, it doesnt leave any real marks to speak of.

nice time to bust out the wireless cameras then

[navkat]

the previous most common way was the three sticks which often left the lock loose afterwords
i wonder if this damages the lock in anyway

poll: really real news or fearmongering

as far as I know, it leaves some minor scratches. you can tell if you opened a lock some 10s of times, and perhaps some proper CSI stuff with a microscope might be able to tell after one time.

but in general, apart from applying a bit more force than usual with normal opening, it doesnt leave any real marks to speak of.

How is this any more scary than an electronic lock-picker though? Those have been around for years.
The only thing that makes this scary is that it's cheap for a common thief to acquire without raising flags if they know someone who works at Home Depot, but then I don't think they'll CARE if they mark up your lock.

[the last yatto]

its why they arent really worried about RFID identify thiefs, you know those payswipe visa cards,
cause the scanners arent common

[Golden Applesauce]

I'm not especially worried by this.  I figure by the time I'm in possession of my own house, lock makers will have all made bump proof locks.  (a number already are, either intentionally or as a side effect of other security measures.  But they're more expensive, so nobody who isn't paranoid owns one.)  And while opening a lock with a bump key is frightfully easy, making a bump key in the first place is a little trickier - you pretty much need a key-cutting machine.

That, and the locks at my dorms have a tendency to already be openable by other keys in the first place, and living in a shared dorm/apartment complex means that the front door, while locked, will be opened by any of a hundred other students to let any arbitrary person in.

[LMNO]

I'm of the opinion that most door-type locks are essentially social fictions.  An inch-long plug of metal jammed into a wooden door frame isn't gonna keep someone out who really wants to get in.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Schlage locks are bump-proof already, and have been for years and years. They're not that expensive.

The whole lock-bumping scare is old news.

Kwikset locks can be bumped pretty easily.

The reason lock-bumping is alarming is that it allows a skilled burglar to get into your house without arousing suspicion. Breaking a window, taking a Saws-all to the walls, or battering in the door will almost certainly result in a call to the police from neighbors.

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

I'm of the opinion that most door-type locks are essentially social fictions.  An inch-long plug of metal jammed into a wooden door frame isn't gonna keep someone out who really wants to get in.

Correct Motorcycle!

[Elder Iptuous]

Lock bumping has been around for decades....
Nigel, schlage locks are not 'bump-proof' they are simply 'bump-resistant' and ward off less skilled thieves (who will probably be entering from a window anyways, right?)
Hell, even the Medeco locks that protect our govt. secrets and cost a fortune have now been proven to be 'bumpable'
http://www.podtech.net/home/3773/defcon-2007-bumping-the-medico-lock

[Triple Zero]

I'm not especially worried by this.  I figure by the time I'm in possession of my own house, lock makers will have all made bump proof locks.  (a number already are, either intentionally or as a side effect of other security measures.  But they're more expensive, so nobody who isn't paranoid owns one.)

I will look this up about the locks for my new appt. Amsterdam-based lockpicking club "Toool" developed the bumpkey technique (afaik, or at least researched it in its early days), I suppose they might have a list of vulnerable/non-vulnerable locks on their site.

And while opening a lock with a bump key is frightfully easy, making a bump key in the first place is a little trickier - you pretty much need a key-cutting machine.

um, I'm not much of a DIYer myself, and therefore don't own any real powertools, but a bumpkey doesnt require a very specific shape, so I would suppose you could do it with an angle grinder* just as well.

and living in a shared dorm/apartment complex means that the front door, while locked, will be opened by any of a hundred other students to let any arbitrary person in.

ah I know the type, we have student flats just like that. you can sneak in without any problem (as long as you dont look like a homeless junkie). i suppose you have separate doors for the corridors and the rooms, right?

oh, and what Nigel said. doors with locks are not entirely a social fiction, they do have a good use and that is, delaying intruders and/or causing them to have to create enough noise to get in. also, of course, they stop opportunity criminals. if you leave your door open with your laptop in plain sight, some asshole with sticky fingers will happen to come along and steal it. if the door's locked, your average asshole doesn't carry the tools to break in all the time, neither do they go around opening random doors to see if there's laptops behind them.
I am entirely aware that someone who really wants to get in, can get in, but that doesnt make doorlocks useless for safety.

Lock bumping has been around for decades....

Nearly a decade. And only got widespread attention since 4 or 5 years.

(unless you count the Danish locksmiths in the 70s that, according to wikipedia, used a similar trick for disassembling locks, not opening/"breaking" them as a security issue)