Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Lock Bumping

Many homeowners are unaware of a potential security risk that over 90 percent of American households today are susceptible to, Lock Bumping. The following is a brief explanation of how residential locks work, what Lock Bumping is, and also the best methods of preventing your home from falling victim to this residential security threat.

The average American house has Pin Tumbler locksets installed. The basic mechanical elements of Pin Tumbler locks contain a series of spring loading stacks known as pin stacks. Every pin stack is made out of a Key pin, which is the pin that touches the key when it’s initially placed into the lock, and then there is the Driver Pin, which is the spring driven pin. The proper alignment of all Key Pins and Driver Pins is what enables a locks cylinder to be turned. This proper alignment is accomplished when the correct key is inserted into the lock. A lock will not open if there is misalignment, which will occur when no key, and or an incorrectly cut key is inserted into the lock.

Lock Bumping is a Lock picking technique used specifically to bypass Pin Tumbler locksets. The Lock Bumping method is carried out by the user placing a key created for the sole purpose of “bumping” your pin tumbler lock, which is called, a Bump Key, slightly into the key hole entry way of any Pin Tumbler lock, and then proceeding to strike the Bump key with a very small amount of force, which will in turn cause the pins within the lock to give way for only a split second, but in that split second anyone willing will gain almost immediate access, leaving little to no evidence of a forced entry onto your property! These reasons combined with the fact that Lock Bumping Keys are inexpensive and easily made is what makes Lock Bumping a serious threat!

In an effort to compete against all of the sites on the internet that promote the criminal use Lock Bumping there are public service sites on the web such as lockbumping.org that do provide awareness and methods of protecting your home from Lock Bumping. There are many different ways, and expert opinions concerning this matter, but the popular consensus came down to the conclusion, a higher security grade level of lock! Yes the one sure way to prevent your home from Lock Bumping is to install locks of a higher security grade. The drawback of higher security grade locks is of course a more expensive lock, but they can be purchased from your local locksmith or home improvement store.

Thank you for reading! For more info check out my website, http://www.completelocksmith.com, where you'll find the solution for all of your Locksmith needs! I look forward to answering any locksmith and security related inquiry you may have. Simply CLICK HERE to be redirected to my websites contact page.

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