The front door? Worth a check. To make it (almost) impregnable

Are we really safe behind our beautiful and expensive armored door? Beware of nasty surprises, which hide behind often false promises. Because if it is true that technology is making great strides in locks as well, as well as in increasingly sophisticated alarm systems (which it is good to always and in any case couple to any burglar-proof device on doors and windows), even the lockpick wizards are not standing idly by .

Gone for yearsillusion of security of the by now antiquated double-bit locks, those made up of a sort of metal square with knurling carved on both sides, the lion's share for at least a couple of decades has gone to the so-called "European" locks, those which provide for a flat key with a sequence of cuts and small holes that jag the surfaces, and perhaps can only be duplicated in the shop that supplied them directly and only by presenting a personal card uniquely associated with our lock.

Is all this enough? No. Let's be honest: the lock certified as "European" is often, too often, an illusion. Because even thieves' skills have evolved in the meantime, so much so that the industry in the sector has fortunately adopted some countermeasures, offering the citizen consumer the opportunity to raise the bar of personal safety again. As? It is easy to say: to correctly evaluate the true ability of our lock to resist attacks, we can (and must) carefully look at the approval and certification tables that companies in the sector have been forced to adopt for some time.

First warning: only the highest certification grades guarantee really good security and to have a reliable European cylinder we have to spend much more than the few tens of Euros of the cheapest examples, resigning ourselves to an expense that can well exceed 200 Euros for our lock alone, possibly labour. Second warning: if you need to replace your current lock without incurring further inconveniences, you have two options. That of doing it yourself after having bought the right "spare part" (but in this case you must read up on the procedure to be adopted avoiding the risk of causing some trouble) or that of contacting a specialized craftsman. But also (and above all) in this case some caution is a must.

We come then to the details to proceed to ensure the security we believe we deserve.

Step number one: understand if we are at risk

Once upon a time there was the so-called lockpicking (the opening with two cleverly manipulated small picks, so dear to cinematography) in addition to the classic attack with the drill (the physical destruction of the lock pawl) or the tearing technique (with pincer tools and a sturdy hammer to brutally unhinge the lock). Then, with the double bit locks, the so-called "Bulgarian keys" arrived, fake keys where the protrusions are made up of small pistons which with rapid alternating movements of the hand automatically adapt to the recesses of this type of locks, opening them in a flash.

We take it for granted (but then we are not so sure) that anyone nowadays equips themselves with a truly armored door with the generally widespread standard criteria, that the key is not the very trivial one with the serrated protrusions only on one side (with the lockpicking open in seconds). But that's not enough. To deal with the tearing attack with a drill be equipped with at least the so-called "defender", the additional armouring of the lock cylinder which looks like two cup-shaped accessories in sturdy tempered steel that wrap around the visible parts on the outside of the lock, protecting the mechanism as much as possible, making it accessible only from the inside of the door, not just for disassembly but also for an attempted attack.

Do you want to see in detail how all this works? Just do an internet search by typing in the words we just used. A multitude of videos on YouTube will show you the equipment live, but also the disturbing burglary practices we are talking about. Including the more "modern" and insidious one, capable of undermining even many European cylinders not updated to the latest attack technique, represented by the evolution of the so-called key bumping, practiced with a small tool in the shape of a European key that collects and modernizes the heritage of the old Bulgarian key and "copy" the unique mechanism of the lock thanks to small and rapid percussions with a small hammer.

Here's an image of a lock that you should definitely replace, unless it's a simple “first level” lock and is itself protected by a second thief-proof lock.

Cross all this with the examination of your lock and you will have made a first correct examination of the situation. Everything seems to be fine, go to the final check. That, precisely, of the real effectiveness of your "European" lock. Which in the latest industrial rules is not by chance classified in various categories with increasing security, reported on the packages containing the cylinder and keys, or in the documentation supplied. The complete anti-risk "table", established on the basis of a European regulation (Uni En 1303:05) is quite complicated. In summary, there are three parameters that we must take into account: the first two concern the general safety coefficient, numbered from 1 to 6 as maximum performance, and the specific one on resistance to physical attack (increasing efficiency from a minimum of zero to a maximum of D passing through A, B and C) while the third concerns the estimated duration over time and is in turn based on three coefficients: 4, 5 and 6. The advice is to check the make and type of our current lock to verify its class, considering that only those with the highest coefficients (at least the first two) combined together guarantee the best level of safety even against "bumping", which is (or should be) anyway also certified with the initials "BKP" on the cylinder or on the package.

Step number two: the possible replacement of the cylinder.

Do we need or want to replace our European cylinder? We have, we repeat, two ways: contact a professional or resort to do-it-yourself. In the first case we have two possible unwelcome side effects: the cost and the possible "parallel" (as paradoxical as this may seem) security problems. The cost is that of the new lock without having the possibility of looking for it with the discounts which on the do-it-yourself market can also be substantial to which the burden of labor must be added.

The parallel safety problem concerns the installer's manipulation of our lock with its key: a problem that should be correctly managed with the craftsman supplying a lock with keys in a carefully sealed envelope which is only opened in our presence. Or, alternatively, with the use of a lock that provides the so-called installation key (in the image it is the one with black plastic) which is automatically disabled with the first insertion of the real keys which must be delivered to us carefully sealed and accompany the personal card for possible duplication in a specialized centre.

The do-it-yourself solution? We highly recommend it, even if it must be handled with care. We recommend it not only for the clean cut in installation costs but also for the savings on the price of our new European cylinder, which we can also buy using e-commerce sites. Result: the total cost can even be halved compared to the over 300 euros of the total expense that we have to face if we call a specialized craftsman. The "do it yourself" replacement technique is relatively simple but not without pitfalls, because the lock mechanism very often includes not only screws and washers but also shims and gaskets which, if not handled correctly, can for example fall inside the shims of the door, forcing us to have to disassemble the entire structure in a complex and costly manner to remedy the damage. Can we do the work on our own with peace of mind? Yes, thanks to this videoguide that we have created for you.

(Video made in collaboration with Metaldesign Roma)

Step number three: stay safe

But the game, in terms of safety, does not end there. The lock is a key, which goes around with us, which can come into contact with eyes and above all with indiscreet hands. And maybe skilled enough to cause us trouble. Because if it is true that the key can theoretically be duplicated only with a card and specialized procedures, it is also true that the fantasy of criminals is also lurking here. The classic duplication with the wax cast is objectively difficult, but far more modern techniques come to the aid of the thief. Unfortunately, the technological challenge between us and the thief reserves continuous surprises. Here is an apparently daring but already widely documented example. Someone has our key available even if only for a moment. We start with a couple of detailed photos from different angles with the mobile phone, put the photos on a digital scanner with a small three-dimensional modeling program, then everything goes to a good quality 3D printer (now available at decidedly affordable costs). Here is the perfect clone in very hard plastic, or even in metal. The game is done. So watch out for our key. Do we want to address this problem too? We too can risk technologically daring solutions: electronic cylinders always "European" standard but with closing and opening controlled by the mobile phone via bluetooth, or with an NFC code sensor, or even with an actuator that can be controlled remotely via Wi-Fi thanks to the Home or office internet. Recommended solutions? There may be some theoretical additional security, but at the cost of complications and many unknowns related to the use of technologies that can always have some malfunctions.