What is Lock Snapping? How to prevent it

Lock snapping is basically a brute force way that burglars use to break into homes with Euro cylinder locks. Instead of trying to pick the lock or use fancy techniques, they literally snap the lock in half by grabbing it and applying pressure. It's pretty different from other methods like bumping or picking because it completely destroys the lock rather than trying to work around it.

The scary thing is how simple the tools are that these criminals use. We're talking about snap bars, screwdrivers, and mole grips that you can pick up from any hardware store. That's what makes this method so appealing to opportunistic thieves. They target the weak spot in standard Euro cylinders, which is around the screw fixing point. When pressure gets applied there, the cylinder just snaps apart, exposing all the internal bits that control your door.

This type of attack is becoming more and more common across Australia, especially in cities where UPVC doors are everywhere. The worst part is that it doesn't take any special skills or training. Anyone can learn how to do this, which is why we're seeing it spread.

If you want to protect yourself, you need to look at TS007 3-star locks or SS312 Diamond Standard locks. These are the real deal when it comes to anti-snap protection. They're designed with sacrificial sections that break away if someone tries to attack them, but the important parts stay secure. TS007 3-star locks have been put through proper testing to make sure they can handle snapping, drilling, picking, and bumping attempts. SS312 Diamond Standard locks are even better and represent the top level of cylinder security you can get.

What's clever about these upgraded locks is that even if someone tries to snap them, they keep working. The front bit might break off as it's designed to, but the core stays operational and the mechanism that controls your door stays locked tight.

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When does Lock Snapping occur?

Most lock snapping happens during the day when people are at work or out running errands. Police statistics from West Yorkshire show that 25% of burglaries they deal with involve this snapping technique. That's a huge chunk of break-ins using this method.

The numbers tell quite a story. Back in 2011, about 15.87% of burglaries involved lock snapping, which was the worst year on record. The good news is that this has been dropping steadily, down to about 8.9% by 2019. This improvement is probably because more people are getting wise to the problem and upgrading their locks.

What's really frightening is how fast these attacks happen. There was a documentary that showed a former burglar who'd never done lock snapping before, and he managed to get into a property in just 40 seconds. Someone who actually knows what they're doing could probably do it in 15 seconds or less.

Australia doesn't have specific lock snapping stats, but our overall burglary numbers are pretty worrying. We rank 7th in the world for burglary rates per 100,000 people, and in 2021 alone, almost 240,000 households got broken into. The Crime Victimisation Survey found that 2% of households experienced a break-in during 2021-22, which works out to about 195,000 homes across the country.

Euro cylinder locks are like a magnet for burglars because they know about this weakness. Police reckon around 22 million doors in the UK could be at risk from lock snapping, and we've got similar vulnerabilities here in Australia with properties using Euro cylinder systems.

The timing of these break-ins follows patterns too. Burglaries tend to spike during holiday periods in January, March, and May when people are more likely to be away from home for longer stretches.

The homes most at risk are those with standard Euro cylinders that stick out more than 3mm from the door handle. The further your cylinder pokes out, the easier it is for someone to grab hold of it and snap it. These locks are super common on UPVC doors, composite doors, and aluminium doors that you'll find all over Australian suburbs. They control those multi-point locking systems that lots of homeowners think are really secure, but if the cylinder itself is vulnerable, all those extra bolts and hooks don't matter much.

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Which lock type is most prone to lock snapping?

Euro cylinder locks are hands down the most vulnerable when it comes to snapping attacks. These are the locks you'll find on pretty much every UPVC door across Australia, and burglars absolutely love targeting them because they know exactly how easy they are to break.

The thing about Euro cylinders is they've got this major design flaw right around where the screw holds them in place. It's like having a weak spot that's just begging to be exploited. Criminals can snap these things in under 20 seconds using tools they probably already have lying around their garage.

What makes it even worse is how these cylinders stick out from your door. The more they poke out past the door handle, the easier it becomes for someone to grab them with a pair of pliers and just snap them in half. Most UPVC doors come with these cylinders straight from the factory, which means millions of Aussie homes are walking around with this vulnerability and don't even know it.

Compare that to other types of locks like mortise locks or rim cylinders, and it's like night and day. Those other locks don't have that exposed barrel design that makes Euro cylinders such sitting ducks. They're built differently and installed in ways that make them way harder to attack.

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What is a cylinder lock?

A cylinder lock is basically the heart of your door's security system. It's that round or barrel-shaped piece that your key goes into, and it contains all the moving parts that make your lock work. When you stick your key in and turn it, you're rotating this cylinder, which then tells the rest of your lock to either lock or unlock your door.

The whole thing works because of these little pins inside the cylinder. When you put the right key in, it pushes all those pins up to exactly the right height, letting the cylinder spin freely. Put in the wrong key or no key at all, and those pins block everything from moving. It's actually pretty clever when you think about it.

What's handy about cylinder locks is that you can just swap out the cylinder bit if you need new keys, rather than ripping out your entire lock. This makes them really popular with landlords and anyone who needs to change their locks regularly without spending a fortune.

Euro cylinders are what you'll see on most modern Australian homes, especially if you've got UPVC or composite doors. They've got that distinctive barrel look and they're designed to work with those multi-point locking systems where your door locks in several places at once. You can get them in different styles too, like ones that need a key on both sides, or ones with a thumbturn on the inside so you don't need a key to get out. The downside is that standard Euro cylinders are the ones with that snapping problem we keep talking about.

Oval cylinders are more of an old-school thing that you'll mainly find on older properties or some commercial buildings. Instead of being round like Euro cylinders, they're oval-shaped, which actually makes them a bit tougher to attack. You don't see them as much these days because Euro cylinders became the standard, but they're still around on some wooden doors and older security setups.

Mortise cylinders are the tough guys of the cylinder world. These get built right into the door itself, so they're protected by all that wood or metal around them. You'll usually find them on really good quality wooden doors or commercial properties where security really matters. They're much harder for criminals to get at because there's hardly any of the cylinder showing on the outside of the door, so there's nothing much to grab onto and attack.

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Why does lock snapping occur on cylinder lock?

Lock snapping happens because cylinder locks have this built-in weak spot right between the cam and the fixing screw. It's like the manufacturers accidentally created the perfect breaking point. This area is where the metal is thinnest and most vulnerable, so when someone applies pressure there, the whole thing just snaps in half like a twig. Once it breaks, the cam that controls all your door bolts is sitting there exposed, and anyone can just poke it with a screwdriver to unlock your door.

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How popular is lock snapping in Australia?

Lock snapping has really taken off in Australia ever since we all started getting those Euro cylinder locks on our doors. What used to be something most crims had never heard of is now becoming their favourite party trick because it's so ridiculously easy to pull off.

You'll see this happening heaps in suburban areas where pretty much every second house has got those modern UPVC or composite doors. That's where most of us live, which makes it a bit scary when you think about it. The reason it's become so popular is dead simple, you don't need to be some master criminal with years of training. Any idiot with a pair of pliers can figure this out in about five minutes.

Suburban streets are like a buffet for these guys now. They can just walk down the road and spot which houses have the old vulnerable cylinders sticking out. It's spread through the criminal world pretty quickly, and there's even stuff online showing exactly how to do it, which doesn't help anyone.

The really frustrating thing is that most Aussie homeowners have no clue their locks are sitting ducks. People think because they've got all those fancy multi-point locks with hooks and bolts everywhere that they're bulletproof. But when someone can snap your cylinder in ten seconds flat, all those bells and whistles might as well be made of cardboard.

This whole mess really kicked off when everyone started ditching their old wooden doors for those shiny new UPVC ones over the last twenty years or so. The old mortise locks on wooden doors were actually way harder to break into, but we all thought we were upgrading to something better. Turns out the crims just learned new tricks to match our new doors. Now it's become their bread and butter method because it works every time and they don't need anything fancier than what's already in their toolbox.

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Why is lock snapping a popular entry method used by thieves?

Lock snapping has become every criminal's go-to method because it's stupidly easy and anyone can do it. You don't need to spend years learning how to pick locks or buy fancy equipment that screams "I'm up to no good." The tools they need are just normal stuff you'd have lying around your shed, mole grips, screwdrivers, maybe a hammer. If a cop stops someone carrying these tools, they look like a tradie heading to work, not a burglar planning a break-in. Plus, it's pretty much silent compared to drilling holes or smashing windows, and it works on practically every standard lock out there. It's like the criminals hit the jackpot with this technique.

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How long does lock snapping take?

Lock snapping takes about 10 to 20 seconds if you know what you're doing, which is absolutely terrifying when you think about it. The whole thing happens in three really simple steps that even a complete amateur can figure out. First, they grab onto the bit of cylinder that's sticking out with their mole grips or pliers. Then they just twist and apply pressure until the thing snaps in half at that weak spot near the screw. Finally, they stick a screwdriver into the broken bit and wiggle the cam around until your door unlocks.

The scary thing is that someone who's done this before can knock it out in 10 seconds flat. Even if it's your first time trying this rubbish, you're probably looking at maybe 30 seconds tops. All they need is a pair of mole grips or pliers, and a screwdriver, stuff that's so common you probably wouldn't think twice if you saw someone walking down the street with them.

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How to prevent lock snapping

Preventing lock snapping is all about making your door security bulletproof so criminals can't exploit those weak spots that make standard locks such easy targets. It's not rocket science, but you do need to know what actually works.

Here's what you need to do to protect yourself:

• Install anti-snap Euro cylinder locks with TS007 3-star or SS312 ratings: These are the real deal when it comes to snapping protection. They're built with clever features that break away safely if someone attacks them, but keep your door locked tight. Don't mess around with cheaper alternatives that claim to be anti-snap but haven't got the proper certifications.
• Use door hardware reinforcements: security handles, cylinder guards: Think of these as armour for your lock. Security handles and cylinder guards create a physical barrier that makes it really hard for thieves to get a proper grip on your cylinder. They can't snap what they can't grab properly.
• Avoid protruding lock cylinders during installation: This is huge. If your cylinder sticks out more than 3mm from your door handle, you're basically giving burglars a handle to grab onto. Keep it flush or as close to flush as possible, and you've already made their job ten times harder.
• Check cylinder certification (BS3621, EN1303): Look for these certification marks because they prove your lock has actually been tested against real attacks. Don't just take the manufacturer's word for it. Anyone can claim their lock is secure, but these certifications mean independent testers have tried to break it and failed.
• Upgrade locks when changing doors or after moving into new property: Don't assume the locks that come with your new door or house are any good. Most builders and previous owners just go with whatever's cheapest. When you're getting new doors or moving house, that's your perfect chance to specify proper anti-snap cylinders from day one.

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What is an Anti-Snap Lock?

An anti-snap lock is basically a Euro cylinder that's been designed to take a beating and still keep your door locked. The whole thing is built around the idea that if someone's going to attack your lock, you want it to fail in a way that still protects you.

The clever bit is this sacrificial front section that's designed to break off cleanly if someone tries to snap it. It's like the lock is saying "okay, you can have this bit, but you're not getting the rest." Behind that breakaway section, there's a reinforced core packed with hardened steel bits and anti-drill plates that are way tougher to get through.

The really smart part is the cam locking mechanism that automatically jams itself into position when the cylinder gets attacked. Even if the front gets snapped off, this cam stays locked in place, so your door won't budge. It's like having a lock that gets more stubborn the more someone tries to break it.

These locks are also loaded with other nasty surprises for criminals. Anti-pick pins that make lock picking a nightmare, bump-resistant bits that stop bump key attacks, and drill-resistant steel inserts scattered throughout. You'll usually see security markings on the outside too, like those 3-star ratings or diamond symbols that basically tell burglars to move along and find an easier target.

The whole thing is engineered with multiple weak points and reinforced sections, so if part of it does break, the important bits stay working and your door stays locked. It's like having a lock that can lose a fight but still win the war.

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How an Anti-Snap Lock can prevent lock snapping?

An anti-snap lock basically outsmarts burglars by using their own attack against them. When someone tries to snap the cylinder, that front bit breaks away just like it's supposed to, but here's the clever part, this actually triggers the internal cam to jam itself tight against the lock casing. So instead of giving the burglar what they want, the lock basically says "nice try, but I'm staying shut."

What happens practically is that when the front section snaps off, the criminal isn't left with a working mechanism they can mess with. Instead of seeing all the bits they need to manipulate with a screwdriver, they're just staring at a useless broken piece while all the important stuff stays buried deep inside your door where they can't get to it.

The mechanical side is pretty brilliant when you think about it. The remaining core section is stuffed full of hardened steel and anti-drill plates, so even if they try to drill through what's left, they'll just end up wrecking their tools and making a heap of noise. The whole thing is designed so the cylinder will only break where the engineers want it to, not where some criminal thinks it should.

The really smart bit is how these locks get more stubborn the harder someone attacks them. It's like the lock has a personality and gets more determined to stay closed the more violence gets thrown at it. The reinforced breaking points mean everything fails in a controlled way that still keeps your door locked tight.

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How does anti-snap increase your Home security?

Anti-snap locks basically turn your biggest security weakness into your strongest point. They completely eliminate the most popular method burglars use to break into Aussie homes these days. What used to be a 10-second job for criminals becomes absolutely impossible, so they either give up and move on, or they have to try much noisier methods that are way more likely to get them caught by neighbours or police. The best bit is that even after someone's had a crack at your lock, it still works perfectly to keep your door locked up tight.

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Contact us for avoid Lock snapping in your Home

Don't sit around waiting for some criminal to test how good your locks really are. Our locksmith team knows exactly what to look for when it comes to vulnerable cylinders, and we can tell you straight up whether your current setup is keeping your family safe or just making you an easy target.

We'll come out and have a proper look at your doors, check what kind of cylinders you've got, and give you the honest truth about whether you need upgrades. No sales pitch, no trying to flog you stuff you don't need, just straight talk about what will actually protect your home.

Whether you've had a close call with a break-in attempt or you just want to get ahead of the game, we've got you sorted. Our locksmiths can fit those proper TS007 3-star rated and SS312 Diamond Standard cylinders that'll make burglars think twice about even trying your place.

Call us today at 0482095238 or email info@lostkeylocksmiths.com.au for your free security assessment. Visit www.lostkeylocksmiths.com.au to learn more about our lock upgrade services. With our $0 call-out fee and 5-star Google rating, you can trust us to keep your home secure.

Don't wait until it's too late and you're dealing with the aftermath of a break-in. Your family's safety and your peace of mind are worth way more than hanging onto those old vulnerable locks that are just asking for trouble.

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