By Learning How to Pick Locks, I Learned How Bad Door Locks Really Are.
About a month ago, I picked up a training set of lockpicks . I’ve always been curious about how hacking works and how difficult it really is. In my training, I discovered not only how easy it is, but also how to get outside the castle when it comes to protecting my home.
Before you get too hopeful, no, this isn’t going to be a guide to picking locks. We did this already during our Wicked Week series, and we still find it helpful to know how security measures are violated to prevent this from happening to you . However, understanding how locks work is not the same as securing them. And picking protection is not the same as securing your home.
Most locks are dumb and easy to pick
When I first received my lock pick set, it came with a set of keys on a ring tied to the lock itself. It was almost a challenge. “Do you need the keys to this lock? You have to choose it first. ” To my surprise, I opened the lock within five minutes. Of course, it was a transparent lock specially designed for training. If it were a regular lock on a real door, it would take me significantly longer (and it was, the first time I tried it), but I was amazed at how simple it was. In fact, with a little practice, I raked the pick along the pins in one swift motion and unlocked it in seconds. It’s still harder for me to pick locks in Fallout 4 .
Naturally, my next thought was, “Is this what protects my home?” So, I decided to do a little research on how the door locks differ from this tutorial padlock. Answer? A little bit . There are several ways to make locks more burglary. For example, some Medeco locks use pins, which must not only be raised to the desired height, but also rotated in a certain way before the lock opens. Of course, tamper-proof locks are just what you need. It is more difficult to pick the lock with them, but it is by no means impossible. It just might take a little longer. More importantly, conventional door locks usually do not have these features.
So how do you know if it is easy to pick a lock in your home? The ANSI grading system is a good place to start. It is a voluntary, independent rating system that the lock industry uses to self-assess how well a lock prevents burglary. Level 3 locks are the weakest and are considered the minimum necessary to secure living quarters (which should give you an idea of where your house’s lock occupies on a security totem pole), while Level 1 locks are the most secure.
Out of curiosity, I decided to see how reliable the castle was in my house. I have a Yale deadbolt . This is perhaps the most beautiful castle I’ve ever lived in, and still only meets ANSI Grade 2. It’s better than average for a residential castle, but still not the best you can get. If you want the best lock on the block, then Level 1 is the way to go. These locks include anti-burglary features, stronger materials and reinforced strikers. However, as we discussed earlier , installing a fancy door lock can simply inform thieves that there is something interesting in your home. If you are going to get a 1st class transom, at least make sure that it is not very different from the usual ones.
Hacking a lock is not even the best way to get around it.
As soon as I started learning about picking locks, I ended up on several forums dedicated to teaching this art. The more I researched, the more I learned that while picking locks is a fun hobby, it is not the most efficient way to get around a lock. Modern pin toggle locks have been around for centuries, and people have found better ways to break them. Here are just a few ways:
- Striker Keys: The striker is similar to a regular key , with pin slots deep enough to fit any lock. A quick hit is all it takes to align each pin in the lock and open it. It’s justscary . While each impact wrench still needs to match the profile tabs, most home locks only use a few key shapes to start with. Finger wrenches can be made from regular blank wrenches found at your local hardware store, or you can buy pre-made wrenches online . Hell, you can even 3D print the bumper keys if you want. A thief with a few of these on his keychain could easily open most household locks. To make matters worse, it may not even look like it is hacking. He might just look like he’s fiddling with a particularly stubborn lock.
- Binding locks : Some locks are vulnerable to a particularly nasty type of attack called asnap lock . With this technique, applying a little pressure correctly will actually break the lock in half, rendering it useless. This is a big problem in parts of the UK, where many homes were fitted with fragile cylinder locks that could be broken with minimal effort. This technique was so widespread that professional thieves did not even break the lock . Most locks will not be vulnerable to this type of attack, but by the time it was discovered, millions of homes had already had these faulty locks installed.
- Credit Cards: If you’ve ever wondered why you need bolts on top of a regular lock, it’s because of this. Using the credit card method, you can insert a small flat piece of plastic between the door and its frame. If the lock you are opening has a slanted edge (allowing you to close a door that is already locked behind you), you can force it open to open the door. The bolts do not have this slanted edge and must be locked with a key so they cannot be opened in this way. Yes, this is the method that has ever been used in every movie and TV show, and yes, sometimes it does work .
All of these methods are intended only for bypassing locks. This is not even close to all the ways to enter the house. If you are a seasoned thief looking for the easiest way to get through a locked door, either of these methods will be more effective and easier than kneeling in front of the door with a couple of thin metal pieces, carefully sliding the tiny pins you can’t see into place. Picking a lock, as a means of breaking, is indeed an extreme measure.
Most thieves will break into without breaking your lock
Once you understand how easy it is to break (or bypass) a blockage, you can easily focus on preventing it. After all, every thief in his right mind would learn this skill if it were that easy, right? As it turned out, not really. According to the Washington Post , the most common burglaries are perpetrated by male teenagers who live a few miles from your home. In other words, this is not a pro. They are boys.
Impulsive criminals tend to use more brute force methods to break into a home rather than tediously picking a lock. Thieves can simply knock down a door ( reinforced impact plates are designed to prevent ), smash a nearby window, or enter through a back door you forgot to lock (oops). According to FBI statistics , as of 2010, 60.5% of all burglaries are associated with forced entry , which includes either breaking doors and windows or threatening those inside.
Of course, this does not mean that door locks are useless. It is true that if someone really wants to get in, he will find a way to get inside. Breaking windows or knocking down doors, however, is a surefire way to get noticed. If you get caught, the threat to people will be even worse, as there is an additional cost to do so. If these are the only options a thief has, they may be more likely to walk into your neighbor’s house with a key under the rug than yours.
Security is all about outsmarting someone else
Years of films and video games have taught me that picking locks is what all thieves do. It’s so cool and you look smart doing it. And I admit that learning and practicing is fun. I feel a little better knowing that if I ever get locked up in my own home, I have a choice but to sit on the sidewalk and whimper until my girlfriend gets home.
However, learning how to pick locks didn’t teach me a damn thing about how to stop a thief. Instead, I learned how thieves actually work. The more I researched how to get into locked rooms, the more I understood how a potential criminal would approach the problem of breaking into my house. With this knowledge, I made several important conclusions:
- The best deterrent is to make your home less attractive. If a thief wants to get inside, your castle won’t stop them. So make sure they don’t want to get inside . Don’t leave giant boxes for all your expensive gadgets next to the trash can. Keep blinds closed. And as attractive as they are now that you know how easy it is to pick locks, don’t put these insanely expensive smart locks on your doors. Anything that says, “I have things worth stealing.”
- Make it difficult for you to hide outside the house. Picking locks is unattractive because it takes time. The more a thief spends outside your home, the more likely he is to be noticed. Make thief detection even easier (and therefore more likely they won’t try) by installing automatic lights outside . Reduce the number of bushes near the front door. The more hidden your front door is, the easier it is for a thief to get inside.
- Hide valuables even in the house. Do not stop security at the front door. Assume that a thief can still sneak in if he wants to (because he can) and hide your most important valuables . You can also leave some cash to give the thief an easy estimate , which may prevent him from trashing the house to find your real valuables elsewhere.
Learning how to pick a lock was fun. It gave me an idea of how the basics of physical security work, but it also helped highlight what really matters. When it comes to protecting your home, you don’t need to build a fortress. You just need to outsmart the person trying to get inside. Whether it’s convincing him you’re not the right target, or just minimizing the damage done if he breaks in, the more you think like a thief, the better you can defend against their attacks.