ID Theft from your Mail Box

One of the most common practices for a thief to steal your identity is to steal your mail.

A good security step is to use a locked mailbox.

However, with Lock Bumping, the security step of using a locked mailbox provides only a minor inconvenience to a thief. Most grouped mailboxes (apartment complexes, HOA mailbox centers, etc.) use a common lock with slight differences in the key for each mailbox. A thief with a master bump key for a group of mailboxes could literally steal hundreds of pieces of mail within a matter of minutes!

What can you do? Contact your HOA or apartment management (or the like) and request that they change the locks to bump-proof locks. However, although a justified cost in your eyes, the management will probably view the current setup as sufficient and not do anything.

Another step would be proactive of your part. Prevent your identity from being stolen before a thief even tries.

How? Please visit the DHI Identity Theft page to learn more.

Technical Info on Lock Bumping

Clicking on this link will take you to a Technical Analysis of Bumping written by security.org. The analysis was written in April 2006.

Why am I posting this? The information on Lock Bumping is "out there" in Cyberspace, available to anyone. I am posting this for the same reason this document was written, "This document addresses the relevant technical issues with regard to the vulnerability of mechanical locks to bumping and the security threat that results. Law enforcement agencies, security professionals, locksmiths and the consumer need to understand the issues in order to accurately gauge individual risks."

It is technical in nature and very informative.

As I have stated previously, please take any appropriate actions you feel are necessary to protect you, your family, and your assets.

From the DHI perspective, this topic offers a reminder that a home inventory is important. Please contact us if you have any questions.

Lock Bumping

DHI keeps abreast of current news stories that are applicable to the Documentation, Preservation and Protection of your assets.

Please take note of Lock Bumping and how it might affect you. Take the appropriate precautions you think may be necessary to protect yourself and your assets. Additional suggestions from DHI include keeping your home inventory current and the use of DataDots, a state-of-the-art asset identification technology.

Lock Bumping is a crime technique that allows criminals to open 90% of ordinary key locks with an modified ordinary key. All the criminal needs is a file to modify a key and an object (screwdriver handle or hammer) to "bump" the key in the lock.

Please see the news report that is posted on the DHI website on this subject.