The police face new criticism today (4/9/14) as an inspection has disclosed that some forces make little or no effort to investigate high-frequency crimes including burglary, car crimes and criminal damage. Furthermore it was found that several victims of these crimes were encouraged by their local authorities to investigate the crimes themselves, including appealing for witnesses and checking CCTV.

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This week (1/9/14), at the IFA trade show in Berlin, Samsung will introduce a new digital door lock. The lock will be presented as part of a wider range of new technologies, all dedicated to increasing home security and energy efficiency. Samsung have said that these products will illustrate its commitment to the development of the ‘Smart Home’, where almost all operations such as turning off light switches, opening windows, and of course locking doors, can be done via a smart phone.

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This week, (1/9/14), engineers claim to have invented a new technique for producing ‘bump’ keys using 3D printing technology. A ‘bump’ key is a method used widely by locksmiths to unlock doors through applied pressure and pushing a lock’s pins out of position. Though these types of universal keys are already accessible, the new process will allow a key to be produced without having ever seen the original key. Their software, Photobump, will only require a picture of the lock, as well as a few manufacturing details which are easily obtainable, detailing the lock’s pin positions.

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