Latch bypass

A latch bypass is an opening that works directly on the latch, the angled bolt that clicks in when the door is pulled shut, without going through the cylinder. The credit card technique is the best-known form, but there are other tools that aim for the same thing through the gap between leaf and frame.

It only works if the door is held by the latch and has not been locked with the key. In many homes on the coast people head to the beach or the community pool simply pulling the door shut, and that is where the risk lies.

How it is prevented:

• By locking with the key whenever you go out.
• With an anti-card or protected latch, which does not give way when pushed from the gap.
• With the door well adjusted to the frame and the slot protected.

If every time you pull the door shut you are left wondering, ask us. We look at it with our lock repair service and our security cylinders.