Locksmithing Blog

Followers of this blog will probably recall our whitepaper on combination padlocks, and the mention of the mechanical keysafes available, especially the poor security of some of them.

Today I received another keysafe. This unit is branded Asec, and also some are branded Burton. At first glance, it looks like the high security Supra keysafe unit, but with a rounded base. Retailing for about half the price, this unit is clearly a direct copy, but made in China rather than the USA. The code setting is nearly the same, the code entry, opening and reset are the same, as is the rubber weather cover design. Even the mounting holes are exactly the same, barring one additional one.

All they left out was the security!

This cheap Chinese copy can be opened without a trace in seconds, with barely any practise. It is, almost unbelievably, easier to open than the Sterling keysafe, itself an insecure joke. And, should someone be inept enough to be unable to open it, they can fairly easily prise it from the wall, due to the 2 rawlplug fixings.

Please, save yourself a fortune in insurance rises and/or the nightmare of an insurance non-payout, and don’t buy this cheap copy keysafe.

Discreet Security *only* recommend and install the genuine Supra/GE keysafe range seen at http://www.keysafe.co.uk/ . Don’t be a fool.

Here’s a report I found online, reporting on a 2-man crimewave using bumpkeys. Lasting over several years, the police had a very good idea who was behind it, and despite traiing them for 2 years theey never got them red-handed. However, when police eventually went to one of their houses, they found it packed with stolen goods! Bumping criminals caught in USA

Closer to home, I went last week to a church who had been targeted. The big old and impressive lock on the vestry door had been opened, and my investigation revealed it was picked with wires. A few hundred pounds in cash was taken. Hardly worth it - robbing a church? If there is a god, and a hell, then those criminals will really regret that choice!

We hope to prevent the need for divine retribution, though. The new security system, carefully designed and chosen to be in keeping with the very old and beautiful wood and stone, should keep anyone unauthorised out for a very long time.

Got back yesterday from a sort of Busman’s Holiday. We took 6 days off and visited a really brilliant technology and security festival, held every 4 years in The Netherlands. The event is called Hacking At Random, and, as the name suggests, involved a lot of people sat behind computers in a field! However, it wasn’t just hacking servers and sniffing traffic in the virtual worlds, it also included a large section on the physical world, including the latest developments with rapid prototyping, UAVs and, of course, locks. Not forgetting a free toasti with a free domain name and socially-engineered T-shirt!

For me, highlights included the talk about breaking the key control on the EVVA MCS, possibly the world’s most secure magnetic lock, for less than the cost of one of the locks, and the use of a rapid prototyping machine to create a physical plastic copy of the Dutch & German police handcuffs. (If you know what this means, you can get the STL file from http://ke.y.nu and then 3D print your own!)

I gave my talk on British lever locks, which was well received, and a Dutch locksmith did a short hands-on picking session to demonstrate just how insecure the local 4 lever locks are. Ray gave his lecture and hands-on about handcuffs, which is always very popular, whilst many others learned that the basic first level of home security, the 5 pin cylinder lock, was, for the cheaper locks, not very secure at all.

Most mind-blowing, however, was the impressioning championship won by Jos. Impressioning is the art of making a key to an unknown lock. This is tricky but once you know how, do-able. It took me 63 minutes, and only half the competitors finished within the hour time limit. The winner, however, came in with a time of just 87 seconds! Put into context, that’s about 12.5 seconds per cut depth! To put it another way, once set up, I take about half that time to copy a key on my key machine, whilst Jos was using a hand file and did not know the key cuts, only the lock. You can see the video at BlackBag.

So, a great time was had by all. There were also some private learning sessions, covering various things, which I will not be mentioning here. But if you gave them, thanks! We all learned a lot.

As part of the latest Home Office “I’ve been caught fiddling my expenses” initative, the Home Secretary has annouced that, in a clearly anti-competitive move, they will be giving away B&Q vouchers for 15% off the cost of locks and other home security equipment.

For the duration of this initative, for as long as they are valid, Discreet Security will be accepting these vouchers for money off any security item we have in stock. Lock cylinders, night latches, BS locks, lever locks, padlocks, chains, window locks and additional door security, even security head screws, all now have 15% off. Please note that this does not include labour charges, as these are already very reasonable, especially if pre-booked, and nor does it include emergency call-outs and key cutting. It does include uPVC door repairs though, despite them being unobtainable from B&Q.

Don’t waste your money on something unsuitable and DIY - call an expert! It’s not a wobbly shelf, it’s your family’s safety.

Last week I went on a training day hosted in London at Alridges, a specialist lock and hardware suppliers, to learn the in’s and out’s of the Austrian company EVVAs range of locks.

The range of products available are second-to-none, and we (6 ICL members) all got to play with the very highest security locks currently available for the average door. We were treated to a tour of the premises, as well as some freebies, but the high point was getting to play with, and re-pin, the newer high security systems such as the DPI, DPX, EPS, EPX, Dual, 3KS+ and MCS EVVA locks.

Believe me when I say that these are locks that few would enjoy having to get past, and at the moment, a lock such as the Dual, with 12 sliders and two sidebars, anti-bump, anti-snap, drill resistant, pick-proof and so on, gives you complete assurance that your door has not been compromised. The 3KS system, which stands for “3 Curves System” is an amazingly beautiful yet simple and robust system, which seemingly owes much to the artisan - even the keys are works of art!

Even large suites of mastered cylinders can be had, across a wide range of profiles, such as Scandanavian, Euro, Oval, rim cylinder and mortice, even padlocks, allowing the widest range of flexibility and ease of use immaginable in a high security mechanical key system. If you are interested in any of these high end locks, which are available with clever features such as master keying, suited operation, over-rides, classroom locks (which can only be locked with the key, and unlocked with the inside handle) and many other bright ideas, please drop us a line.

Seems there are a few rogue locksmiths running around down near Essex and London, and by charging over £200 a time to open simple - no, trivial - locks to gain entry for lock-outs, they got picked up and set up by Rogue Traders. You can watch the action at http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00fztby/b00fzl3c/Rogue_Traders_Series_7_Emergency_Call_Out/ and trust me, it is worth it!

There are at least 4 ways to open that door without damage to the door or the lock, 5 if you include smashing the window. Don’t get me wrong, there are some locks that look like the two featured locks that are quite hard to open, and sometimes you will get one that for whatever reason will not play, but in the last 100 doors I’ve opened of that style, I haven’t had to drill a single one.

I can honestly say I’ve never charged more than half what either of the featured Rogue Traders for opening a door. And, don’t forget, if I did drill your lock, I’d be replacing it free, under the ICL guarantee.

(Locksmiths who cannot pick a simple lock are, however, not as scary as the fake CORGI gasmen, though. At least with the locks it was just money, and not money and your life at risk when it turns out they are cowboys.)

A collegue tells me that in his area, one large series of adverts in one of the big phone books by one national advertiser actually has many small adverts, all with local addresses, all across the area. They are desperate to look like a local company, and, to be fair, if they are prepared to open an office in every town to get an address, then fine.

Unfortunately, it turns out that the addresses being given are in fact not genuine. One turned out to be a derilict garage, whilst another, perhaps more worryingly, turned out to be a lady’s home, who said she had no knowledge of the advertiser and certainly hadn’t given permission.

Rest assured that this company has full permission and authority for both the addresses we use!

This is a bit of a social comment. When I am out doing work for councils and companies, I get to go to some really charming places. Others are not so charming. Others, well, they leave you scratching your head.

This street in Manchester is typical of a number that I see when doing my job. It’s Leven street, M40 9DG, and I spent a good half hour talking to one of the few remaining residents.

(Click to zoom)

This used to be a good area, with strong social ties, but, with the rumours of redevelopment and the council pushing drug addicted and anti-social persons into the area, those who could started to leave.

It has in fact been 12 years since the first of these houses were boarded up. The remaining residents have campaigned, written letters, been to meetings, and tried almost every avenue open to them. Sadly, nothing has been done. Due to lack of heating and roof repairs, the remaining residents face damp problems coming through the walls, as well as social isolation and rising crime.

These houses, perfectly nice terraced houses, probably worth at least £40K each even in their current state, have just been abandoned, along with those who still live with them.

This seems to me to be an ideal case for an organisation like Shelter to lobby, and see what can be done towards getting these houses re-opened for lives and life, at a time when so many are in hostels, and affordable housing seems to be out of the reach of so many.

http://www.peterborough.gov.uk/page-4620

From August 19th 2005:

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Locksmith sentenced on £2,750 benefit fraud charges