Kryptonite bike locks using a cylinder locking mechanism, top, can be picked with a common Bic pen. Newer locks, bottom, by the company employ a flat key to help combat theft.
Battered by an explosion of news during the past two weeks that Kryptonite bicycle locks can be popped with the barrel of a ballpoint pen, the portable security company announced Wednesday it will offer free U-lock exchanges for concerned consumers.
Word spread quickly on the Internet that several models of Kryptonite U-locks, long heralded by cyclists and bike shops as the ultimate bicycle security device, are easy to defeat. Web sites offered videos demonstrating that by
jamming the empty barrel of a BIC ballpoint pen into the tubular keyhole of a U-lock, shaking it and twisting it clockwise, the locks are easily pried open.
Department of Public Safety Sgt. Bob Guse said bike theft is a major problem at the University, where many students use bicycles as their primary mode of transportation. As many as 25 bikes will be stolen during the first few weeks of fall term, DPS estimated.
Guse said even vulnerable U-locks offer better protection than cable locks. Thieves have techniques that render a one-inch cable breakable in about five minutes, he said, noting that
U-locks are still difficult to pick.
Collins Cycle Shop manager Stephen Glass said he spent about 30 seconds digging at a Kryptonite lock with a ballpoint pen.
“Although I didn’t finish opening it, I could tell quickly that it was possible,” he said.
However, Glass pointed out that some models of Kryptonite and other
copycat brands of U-locks are still fine to use. For the past two weeks, he has had trouble keeping flat-key and combination-lock
models on the shelves, especially since he dropped the price for a more secure $75 Kryptonite U-lock
to $50, he said.
Blue Heron bicycle shop owner Susan Kelly said U-locks are still an effective anti-theft device, but ultimately recommended that students use multiple types of locks.
Wheelworks owner Bill Cole agreed.
“Especially in Eugene and on the UO campus, we have huge bike-theft problem as it is,” Cole said. “Two locks will make a huge difference. Someone prepared to break one kind of lock will pass by bikes that have two.”
University freshman Zach Rose, who worked in a bike shop for
the past four summers, said he uses a Kryptonite lock, but isn’t worried about thieves stealing his bike.
He painted his bike to make it more distinctive.
People who wish to exchange their tubular Kryptonite or
Kryptonite co-branded locks can find more information at www.kryptonite.com or call Kryptonite customer service at (800) 729-5625.
