• Embed Doc
  • Copy Link
  • Readcast
  • Collections
  • CommentGo Back
 
http://www.toool.nl/consumer-reports-nl.pdf 1
Certified locks get knocked out
Article translated from the Dutch Consumentenbond magazine (Consumer reports) 04/2006.Out of 60 locks with the “Dutch Police Seal of Approval for Secure Housing”, our lock expertsgot 47 open. This is including locks that are supposed to be resistant to the “bump key”method.All sorts of door locks that are labeled as being of good quality can be opened more easilythan we think. That is what a test of 60 locks revealed, locks that get the Police Seal of Approval (PKVW). 47 of them can be opened within three minutes with a so-called bump key.Admittedly: by an expert.But a layman can open 22 of the 47 locks as well. In this regard, the PKVW does not offer thesecurity that we would expect of it. Houses in more recently constructed neighborhoods aresometimes all fitted with the identical lock brand (the same lock, different keys), and even if they are bolted, they do not offer much protection against this break-in method. In one chillingscenario we can imagine, someone with bad intent could do a night of shopping withoutleaving any visible traces behind. The “bump key” was already in the news in 2005 at a TVbroadcast from Nova, in which it was demonstrated how locks rated with SKG stars, asadvised by the Police Seal of Approval, could be opened rather easily without visible traces(video:www.toool.nl/bump key-alert.wmv).No one agrees as to what that broadcast means. At the time, we contacted the administrator of the Dutch Police Seal of Approval, the Centre for Crime Prevention and Security (CCV)and the Ministry of Domestic Affairs,to find out if society would be benefited by a final opinionabout the bump key. The result was a joint plan of attack by the Dutch Consumer Reportsand the CCV: we would do a test and the CCV would take the results seriously by no longer recommending locks for the Police seal of approval (PKVW) if they could be opened with thebump key method.
THE FACTS:
•
The most disturbing result of our study is that almost 80% of the locks tested could beopened quickly and rather easily with a bump key (in numbers: 47 out of the 60).
•
Of those 47, there were 22 that were also no problem for inexperienced laymen. 13 out of 20 laymen could open at least one lock with a bump key. Some of them succeeded oneven more than one lock, which means that many others will also succeed.
•
If we succeed in making a bump key for almost every one of the locks, then that meansthat other people will succeed as well. On the internet, there are vendors who claim to beable to create a bump key for every type of lock on demand. We did not investigate theseoffers, however.
•
Our attempts to make a bump key only failed on the Anker 9700 Comfort. With 35 other locks it was tricky; with 25 it was difficult; with six it was very difficult. The last twocategories are flat keys with holes, or so called “dimples” (see photo on the next page).The more difficult it is to make a bump key, the smaller the chance is of attempting abreak-in with it.
•
Although making a bump key out of a key with dimples is difficult to very difficult, thereare locks that can be opened within three minutes with the right key.
•
We tested five locks in which we found a feature that is supposed to inhibit the use of abump key. Nonetheless, one of them could be opened (see table).
•
It is the easiest to make a bump key out of a standard key (with “saw teeth”). That caneven be done with a file.
 
http://www.toool.nl/consumer-reports-nl.pdf 2
•
Seven add-on locks with a cross-key (see photo on the next page) could not be openedwith a bump key. Those are the DX DSKG 600 (
 €
15) and Nemef 1008 (
 €
29) “both 1 SKG-star” and the 2-star locks Fiam 1400 (
 €
32), Ikon 3211 (
 €
63), Ivana 44449 (
 €
40), Lips5018C (
 €
64) and Zaso NL 2005 (
 €
27).
•
There are other ways to open these locks quickly and relatively easily, but Lips, Ikon andZaso make that difficult with a so-called profile ridge.
•
One scant comfort: the bump keys that we ordered on the internet are of mediocrequality. But they did turn out to work with Abus and Nemef locks.
•
And finally, as a true comfort: there are also bump proof locks. Some of them have adifferent inner working and do not rely on pins that are easy to manipulate with a bumpkey.
THE TEST: HOW AND WHAT
To provide us with bump key experts, we called on The Open Organization of Lock Pickers(http://www.toool.nl), which also contributed to the TV broadcast of Nova in April 2005.Members of Toool practice lock picking as a sport. Damage free opening of locks is their hobby. The German lock pickers from “Sportfreunde der Sperrtechnik” (http://www.ssdev.org)helped out as well.In theory, all of the locks recommended within the Police seal of approval (PKVW) wereeligible for the investigation. They have a seal of approval from the Façade ConstructionQuality Foundation (SKG). If locks came in more than one version, we chose the mostcommon one.We were unable to buy a number of locks because they were old models, the shipping timewas extremely long, they were difficult to find, they were not intended for home use, or because we had a version that was practically identical. Eleven locks could be excluded fromthe test because a pre-investigation showed that they were bump-proof. They are listed in thetable.We bought 2 of every lock tested and got 3 keys. Out of 2 of those, we made bump keys, asmuch as possible with computer-controlled machine tools. If that wasn’t possible, we used afile.In addition, we ordered bump keys from a German internet shop where we encountered sets“speziell für die Niederlande”, which anyone can order without a problem.We also looked to see if we could order bump keys in the Netherlands on the internet.Each lock was tested by at most 3 experts during at most 3 minutes.It is generally assumed that a burglar will give up his attempt after that length of time. Onevery lock that was opened, 2 inexperienced laymen tried their luck. To keep the laymaninexperienced we would not let him test more then 5 locks.
HOW BUMPING WORKS
Locks usually work with spring-loaded pins in two halves, which normally block the lock fromturning. The correct key pushes the pins exactly to the point the blocking effect is removedand allows opening of the lock.If an adapted key for that lock the“bump key”is inserted and struck, one half of the pins will  jump away, while the other half stays more or less in place. If the key is turned during thatsplit second when the blocking is removed, the lock opens. See:http://www.toool.nl/bumping.pdf  
 
http://www.toool.nl/consumer-reports-nl.pdf 3
NOW WHAT?
Dutch Consumer Reports sees no reason for panic, although there is reason to be careful.Aside from the presumably still low number of break-ins with a bump key, it is of course anunpleasant idea that people could come into your house without much effort. We think thatthe CCV should raise the bar on the Police Seal of Approval (PKVW_.The problem is somewhat less evident in older neighborhoods, where the locks will be morevaried. But we suspect that a burglar with 10 to 15 bump keys will come a long way. The riskseems to be greater in more recently constructed or renovated neighborhoods, high-rises withmaster keyed locks and other projects where lots of locks with identical keyways have beeninstalled. In recently constructed neighborhoods it has only been about seven years thathouses have been getting the PKVW. The PKVW still does not take the bump key intoaccount, but it does set standards for other security measures. That makes the chances of abreak-in (without a bump key) generally lower than for houses without a PKVW. You couldput an additional lock on the door, with the idea being that every lock is an additionalnuisance for the burglar. Keep in mind that two locks with 1 SKG star offer as muchresistance as one lock with 2 stars. For add-on locks, see elsewhere in this article. Two or three locks on a door, of course, make it more time-consuming to lock the house properly.And in case of fire, it takes longer to escape.If you are not sure how secure your house is, you can always turn to a security company for advice that has been recognised as a PKVW company (see www.politiekeurmerk.nl, clickContact). A company like that can suggest measures to take, can implement them and canprovide the PKVW certification. It is well known that after the PKVW certification has beengranted, the risk of break-ins becomes 95% lower. So from now on, take care to install bump-proof locks; have this put in writing in the estimate.In estimating the risks of the bump key, you can see in our table how easy it is to make abump key; this lists whether experts could open the lock and whether laymen could as well.There are more unsavory methods to break in, such as drilling and yanking/pulling. Withdrilling, the keyhole is drilled out; with yanking/pulling, a hardened steel screw is driven in andthe lock is yanked out of the door with a crowbar.If you have a key that is copy protected because you have to show a card with a code on it inorder to have a copy made, then not just anyone can buy a spare key. That makes it a littletrickier to obtain a bump key, and the chance of a break-in a little lower.
Insurance policy
The bump key supposedly leaves no visible trace. That is why it is interesting to see howhomeowners’ policies deal with break-ins without a trace.We asked 28 insurers. From the 20 responses we can draw some interesting conclusions.
•
Homeowners insurers do not know whether break-ins with bump keys are takingplace in the Netherlands.
•
Insurers usually provide restitution for losses to theft without visible signs of a break-in. Exceptions include, among others, garages, sheds, basement lockers and roomsin student dormitories.
•
Forensic investigation on a lock can reveal the use of a bump key, but in practice, thiseffort is seldom undertaken.Our advice: if you suspect after a burglary that a bump key was used, then don’t use the lockanymore (on the outside of your house). Remove the lock from your door immediately,replace it with a bumping-proof version and ask for a forensic investigation on the lock. Theuse of a regular key can erase traces of a bump key.
of 00

Leave a Comment

You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...
You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...