LockPicking Courses OnLine - From Your House to the White House
As the above video clearly displays, opening any locked door, is very easy - even for a non-professional lock picker. The Slate article in this Bulletin reports how popular lockpicking (known as locksport) has now become - with training videos and clubs - springing up all over the nation.
Pick a Lock, Any Lock YouTube makes it easy to learn the finer points of breaking and entering—and locksmiths aren't happy. Slate Posted Wednesday, July 23, 2008, at 3:39 PM ET
Locksmiths and lock manufactures have found themselves in a jam. The skills of their trade, passed down through generations under conditions of occult secrecy, have been jimmied open online (subscription required). The professionals are crying foul over enthusiasts of "locksport"—amateur lock pickers who congregate on the Web to discuss how to pick locks. The amateurs do this for fun, not mischief, they say; there's a sublime thrill in charming a deadbolt to turn your way. And they argue that by finding and publishing flaws in some of the most popular locks on the market—from the locks you've got on your front door to those the president has on his—they're forcing improvements in security. Lock professionals say the opposite is true: that in showing people how to pick locks, hobbyists are swinging your doors wide open to criminals.
This is a familiar tale. Its plot points echo those of many recent computer-security debates. An entrenched community that's used to working in secret suddenly sees its entire business upended by the secrecy-busting ways of the Internet. It's a fate suffered by voting machine firms, software companies, and ATM manufacturers. Now it's happening to locksmiths and lockmakers, too.
But there are a few interesting wrinkles to the skirmish between amateur and professional lock wranglers. For one thing, unlike security-services company Diebold, the locksmiths and lockmakers aren't just fighting a new crop of activists. They're fighting a new subculture—really, a new sport.
All of us are trying to stay one step ahead regarding especially our private security. No doubt, techonology is giving us a run, but it still ultimately comes down to the simple things: having a good alarm system in place, dead bolts and sharp-eyed neighbors.
You're On Vacation: The Burglars Aren't. Security Tips
The school year is coming to a close next week here in the Northeast, and the hostage situation at the pumps aside, most families have planned vacations this summer. The etymology of the word vacation itself : from the Latin root vac, is to render something/someone "empty" (vacuum, vacate, vacuous...). Somewhat ironic in the case of a home burglary during a family's away time.
In today's Bulletin we are going to give you the standard "what to do to make your home look occupied while you are away" tips and a few more up-to-date security pointers: (Also, the above video, aside from being highly entertaining, likewise contains solid security tips re: burglary prevention during your vacation.)
Traditional Tips:
• Stop mail and newspapers, and ask a trusted neighbor to pick up any deliveries that might be made while you are gone.
• Place several lamps and radio/TV in various parts of your home to automatic timers, so they turn on and off at appropriate times (vary the timers also by the unit itself so that the living room light does not come on at exactly 7 p.m. every night...).
• Arrange to have your lawn mowed (or sidewalk shoveled) while you are away.
• Don't leave keys in obvious exterior places like in the mail box or under a flower pot or door mat. Leave your house key with a trusted neighbor.
• Instruct your trusted neighbor to report unusual activity to the police - and not to wait until they can contact you first. You may be holed up in a Carlsbad cavern for several nights or an in-house therapy clinic following a runn-in' with the bulls in Pamplona.
• Have a neighbor park their car in your driveway overnight (and move it around from day to day).
• Don't leave notes indicating your absence.
• Many security experts advise unplugging the electric garage door opener while you are away. We don't. A burglar's scanner can easily detect whether the device is activated. Simply place it too on a variable timer.
• Make sure all your door and window locks are working and in use.
• Turn off or turn down your telephone ringer. A phone ringing endlessly is a clue to a would-be burglar that no one is home. This is especially important if you are living in an apartment building where burglars may be more likely to hear your phone ringing. Call forward your incoming calls in your absence.
• Unless you have reason to believe your piping system is in bad shape and may burst in inclement weather, do not turn off your main water valve before you leave. Fortunately, technological advances in utility services now offer scanning options that don't require exterior meters on houses - an inactive one a sure clue to a burglar that the home residents may be away.
Contemporary Tips: • Do not activate automatic "away" responses from your email - business and personal - addresses. And especially ones with specific dates of your absence. You might as well inquire into ad rates in the NYT.
• Further on the preceding tip, activate a disposal WiFi card from your vacation spot. Repeatedly answering your emails from your iPhone, Wing or Blackberry, by definition, signifies that you are away from your normal communication access points. (Yesterday's sad-sack street burglars have been replaced by snipers - they target specific homes, can obtain email addresses easily.. e.g. most business emails are comprised of the person's first initial and full last name@theirlawfirm, Email read times can easily be tracked - yes, including "Internet" ones. A cleverly written subject line can pique someone's curiosity enough into opening a "pigeon" email. Today's smart burglar considers this time in tracking you a lucrative investment.)
• Have your email/snail mail forwarded to a virtual post office. They can hold, forward, scan or even read your email/mail to you. Big advantage: the forwarding is discreet and undetectable.
Generally, we tend to believe and trust in the good of the vast majority of people; being smart and proactive with your home and valuables while you are away helps to maintain that attitude.
