Lock-picking: In profession, hobby and ethical bindings

Many people claim that lock-picking is more of an art than science. It is a challenging practice with the skill to manipulate locks without using a key.  

Although challenging and fascinating, lock-picking is always associated with criminal activities. This skill can be used for a legitimate purpose or for unethical use too. Yet this practice prevails to the extent that many adopt this as a hobby.

The earliest lock mechanism is found in ancient Egyptian and Roman civilisations. Lock-picking came into being as a profession in the 18th century. At that time, a person who could pick a lock was considered a security consultant. Because only they could design and install a security system. 

The arc of the viewpoint of this profession changed during the industrial revolution. Lock-picking became more of a criminal activity. There were many cases of theft and burglary using lock-picking skills. This gave rise to public terror, and everyone started to consider it a shady practice. This perception exists to date.

If you have read this article up to this point, you must be curious about how people pick a lock or how lock-picking becomes a legitimate hobby. 

The main theory of lock-picking is to manipulate the lock's internal components to mimic the key's action. The primary tools used for this purpose are the pick and the tension wrench. The pick manipulates the pins, while the wrench creates the tension needed for the pins to move.

The most common type of lock found in our houses is the Pin tumbler lock. The pin tumbler lock is designed in a way that there are pins of different lengths. The pins need to be set at the correct height to unlock.

A simpler type of lock is found in cars and cabinets called a Wafer lock. There are a series of flat metal wafers. To unlock, we need to align the wafers.

So how do these functions work without the particular key? The first step is to apply tension to the lock. This is done by a tension wrench. Putting the wench in the keyhole, tension is applied. 

This tension keeps the pins and tumblers in position, creating a binding force. Then the pick is used to manipulate the pins, one at a time, until it is set into the correct position.

You can see that this skill can only be earned through practice and patience. Lock pickers have to understand the mechanism of a lock well to master the art of unlocking it. If you want to master this skill as a hobby, you have to spend hours with different locks and understand their designs.

Whether you adopt it as a hobby or try it out just on a whim, ethical factors should always be considered. As you learn lock-picking techniques, you gain the power to trespass on other's property. But this power should not be exploited in any way. 

safrinakabir@iut-dhaka.edu