KANSAS CITY, Mo. - An NBC Action News investigation has identified hundreds of thousands of Web sites that reveal a cheap way to get into your home or your car. All a thief has to do is order a special cut key from one Web site, watch a two minute training video on another site, and wait for an overnight delivery. “Probably $20.00, $25.00,” is what Kansas City Police auto crimes analyst Steven Downing says it takes for a thief to defeat your lock. Downing says investigators are finding them on crooks, especially when they track auto theft crime rings.
Your Car Could Be At Risk
“Dealing with just auto theft and vehicle stuff that I do, it's bad knowing that that kind of stuff is out there” Downing said. He demonstrated a key called a “try out key” on several locked cars in the police department impound lot. The key, available online, is cut from what looks like a factory replacement key, so unless you’re an expert you wouldn’t be able to tell it apart from any other. Downing inserted the key and then wiggled it back and forth until the cylinders moved and the lock opened. “This one's actually pretty weak,” Downing said as he defeated one car’s lock in under two seconds. “The success rate with this set is about 80 percent,” says one internet site which sells a 135-key set for about $1.29 a key. “There are tools out there for newer vehicles,” Downing says, but warns cars built in 2000 and before are especially vulnerable.
And What About House Keys?
There are also keys designed to break into household locks. “Bump keys” are cut from the same blanks as the brand of lock they are made to break into. The teeth are cut lower towards the spine of the key and a slight jolt (bump) is needed to force the key into the lock with a momentum that drops the cylinders onto the key and turns the tumblers. A hammer, file, or the back of a screw driver can be used to bump the key into place.
How Easy Are They to Use?
To see just how easy it was, with her father’s permission, we asked seventh grader Logan McKenna to try it out herself. She watched one of the multiple internet “how to” videos and followed our photographer to a secure room inside the studios at NBC Action News. In two minutes and twenty five seconds, she’d defeated the lock and was inside a room where our TV engineers stores high dollar electronic equipment. Within a few minutes total, she’d broken in three times. The same key Logan used inside our studios worked equally well when we tested it on residential locks. “I’ve lived here for over 20-years, so, very scary,” said Julie Huey after our camera crew broke into her neighbor’s home (with the neighbor’s permission).” Each bump key only fits one brand of lock, but because the contractor who built the development where Huey lives used the same brand key on every front door when it was built, our key fit nearly every key on her block.
They Must Be Hard to Get?
Cutting a bump key is something any locksmith could do. “Of course I could,” said Olathe locksmith Jug McKee who refuses to make bump keys. “No, someone that's coming to get these is a burglar.” But online you can get bump keys for nearly every brand of regular home lock. Search lock bumping online, you'll get about a half-million hits, including the videos on how to do it. Police say there is no good data on how often bump keys are being used in house burglaries, “We just don't know,” said Michael Betten with the Overland Park Police Department. Betten says lock bumping would leave little if any clue of how a burglar got in. “The visual images of a bump key are kind of dynamic, but I don't see it happening a whole lot,” Betten says.
How to Protect Your Valuables
The family dog, security signs, and making sure your entryway is visible to neighbors are just a few of the things you can do to protect your home. Consumer Reports advises strong doors, jams in sliding glass doors, reinforced glass, pruned shrubs, and lights with motion detectors. There are also more expensive bump resistant locks. Make your car less tempting by hiding valuables and don't leave the engine running.
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