Thieves' techniques to open your lock in a minute

BarcelonaA locksmith explains that on more than one occasion he has installed locks, doors, and other security mechanisms in the homes of Barça players. And they always have one obsession: installing the most secure systems. Obviously, he's talking about large mansions and large investments to protect, but he emphasizes that they typically spend between 3 and 5% of the home's budget on security systems. That is, of every million euros, 50,000 are allocated to protecting their property. According to the locksmith himself, this differs greatly from the investment made by people with more average salaries. For every euro spent on a house or apartment, the percentage allocated to security decreases exponentially.

"We live in a country that is more reactive than preventive," says Juanjo Gutiérrez, security advisor at Cerrajería Solidaria. What's common, he comments, is for people to want to reduce the cost of a home with locks, doors, and closures. "How much does a cell phone cost you?" he asks. And he himself answers that a lock is no more expensive than a state-of-the-art phone. This always ends up leading to the same types of doors, locks, cylinders (the part where the key is inserted), and keys, and thieves are already trained to open them in very little time. Gutiérrez explains that, in a ten-minute class, he can get anyone to open one of these locks in fifteen seconds. Just fifteen seconds to open it twice and relock it again with another two turns.

In this sense, locksmiths agree that the door is one of the most important security elements in a home to prevent burglaries. The myth may turn out to be true: "If they want to get in, they will," says Gutiérrez. The important thing, he continues, is that thieves see that to enter your house they must invest "more time" and "more noise." The goal, then, is to ensure that if you live in a blog, you're not the one with the most insecure door on the staircase, as you'll be a target for thieves. And how can you improve your door? By changing the cylinder for a more secure one, installing two locks instead of one, installing exterior lock protectors, buying keys that can't be duplicated... and a false myth: leaving the key in the other side doesn't make the door more secure, especially with modern locks.

Gutiérrez also insists on seeking the advice of specialists when deciding on locks for a home and taking out insurance. For example, sliding balcony windows can be opened with a simple screwdriver. Sergi Soriano, a locksmith at Says Lock High Security Locksmiths, also advocates installing a second lock: "No system is invulnerable, but this way you send the message that it will be difficult and take a while to get in. This isn't in their interest," he comments.

The Thieves

Knowing how to pick a lock isn't difficult, and there are dozens of videos online showing how to do it using various techniques. Burglar groups usually specialize in a specific technique, and the way they break into an apartment already reveals what type of gang they are. According to police sources, Albanians are more adept at climbing courtyards. Georgians, on the other hand, prefer to place markers (which serve to see if someone has opened that door in the last few days) and then break in by forcing the lock with a chanterelle (a small bent wire) or by using the bumping technique. (Thieves insert master keys they have for the main locks and then break them with a hammer. It's usually quick, but noisy. Other, more brutal thieves use a crowbar or a pair of wire cutters. And finally, a classic that's still common: many doors can be opened with an X-ray if the lock hasn't been turned.

In this regard, Soriano comments that groups of thieves have become much more professional in the last decade. His company—which operates in part of the city of Barcelona and three surrounding regions—services between two and four homes a day. "They're organized into gangs, they use a technique that makes it hard to even notice the lock being forced. They break into homes, and the people who live there don't realize until everything is in disarray. They're way ahead of the game and attack any type of lock," he points out. "I encounter more cases of burglaries during the day than at night, because they also take advantage of street noise and general movement of people so that neighbors don't get suspicious if they hear knocks," he adds.

New technologies

Locksmiths admit that it may seem archaic that in the 21st century, surrounded by technology and artificial intelligence, we still work with manual locks. However, they continue to claim them as the most secure. Gutiérrez explains that during the pandemic, systems that worked with sight or fingerprints were tested, but they didn't quite catch on. He does rely more on digital locks that can be opened from a cell phone. "It's the future, surely," he says, although he also warns that cell phones are easy to hack and are often stolen or lost. Among the new features is also a kind of individual "master key." That is, your key can open the door to the blog (which they insist must also be secure) and the one to your apartment. But your neighbor's key, although it also opens the one downstairs, can only open the one in his house.

Another recommendation from locksmiths is to be careful with locks and keys purchased online. They've seen more than one case where the lock seller keeps a key and then robs the customer's apartment. In fact, thieves also buy online. The most sophisticated burglary techniques are those that leave no marks on either the lock cylinder or the door, such asimpressioningor thetopolinoIn the first, thieves forge keys from the main lock brands—the so-called blank keys—and attach a metal sheet to the top of the key. This sheet, like tracing paper, engraves the cam marks when they insert it into the apartment they intend to rob. This tool can be easily purchased online (it costs around 300 euros) and contains a metal rod with mechanisms that adapt to the internal holes of the cylinder, just like a master key.