How to protect a home against lock bumping
By Claes Bell • Bankrate.com

Imagine a method of defeating the vast majority of American locks that can be learned in under an hour, uses tools that can be acquired on the Internet for less than $50 and, if done right, can be performed in less than a minute, leaving little or no trace of a break in.

If you watch local news or spend time on the Internet, you may have heard alarming stories about a new way of lock-picking called "lock bumping" or "key bumping." Security experts in Europe and, more recently, the United States have declared lock bumping a clear and present danger to anyone who secures their valuables using pin-tumbler locks, which happens to include the vast majority of American houses.

But what is lock bumping? And will the possible proliferation of lock bumping really affect the average American, or is it merely another bogus, media-fueled boogeyman a la killer bees and Y2K?

What is lock bumping?
Lock bumping is a way of opening a lock using a specially filed key that is the same size and shape as the key normally used in the target lock. This special "bump" key is inserted into the target lock and then struck with a tool made of rubber or plastic. The impact of the bump key on the tumblers inside the lock temporarily pushes them up, allowing the lock's cylinder to turn. This method, if done correctly, can open a lock quickly and with relatively little noise.

Tools of a lock-bumping thief

A special "bump" key is inserted into the target lock and then struck with a tool made of rubber or plastic, such as this blue tool on the bottom of the image. The impact of the bump key on the tumblers inside the lock temporarily pushes them up, allowing the lock's cylinder to turn. When done right -- and it's not hard to learn -- this method can quickly and quietly open a lock.

"The main concern is that it is so darn easy and that you don't need any special tools or training. You only need a key, which in most cases is an easy thing to get," says Barry Wels, founding member of The Open Organization of Lockpickers (TOOOL), a Dutch locksmithing club that has helped promote awareness of the technique among government officials and consumers alike. "If you take a motivated 15- or 16-year-old and give him an hour or two and $100 to invest in tools, he can open most locks."