Acne

Ralph Winn asked:


Security expert Marc Weber Tobias is worried about your front door . . . and your back door, your side door, your windows, and your garage door. His expertise focuses on securing doors and windows, and he knows about the most common threats to that security. One common security threat that has been on the rise since its discovery by locksmiths in Denmark in the 1970s is “lock bumping.” As Tobias can tell you, securing doors and windows - and ultimately, your loved ones and valuables - takes more than the basic lock these days.

What is a “Bump” Key?

A “bump” key works by tricking the tumblers in a pin lock to fall into the correct place for just an instant, but long enough for someone to turn the key and unlock the door. A basic key, a sturdy file, a little pressure, and a gentle “bump” against the key is enough to knock the pin tumblers into place and pop a lock open.

“Any pin tumbler lock that utilizes two or more moving pins within each chamber is at risk. Door locks, post office locks, file cabinet locks, access control override locks, and padlocks. All of them can be bumped if you have the key that will fit the keyway and has been properly cut . . . Are there exceptions? Yes. Can every conventional lock be bumped open? No, but statistically, a very high percentage can,” says Tobias in his online column “The Lockdown.”

Not only can a criminal easily get inside, but you may run into insurance troubles if there is no sign of forced entry. A “bump key” leaves no marks or scratches. It looks as though someone had a key to unlock the door. They did, technically, have a key - a “universal” key.

What can you do to ensure that you are properly securing doors and windows? You can install advanced, contemporary lock technology that has addressed the “bump” key threat and made it irrelevant.

Securing Doors and Windows Against Bump Keys and Other Tricks

Fortunately, since the “bump” trick was developed over 30 years ago, security companies have had time to come up with answers to the threat. If you have locks built before 2005, you might want to consider having them replaced with these more secure models:

? Medco - In 2005, Medco introduced its response to the bump key problem by adding an innovation to the design of all of their locks. A piece known as the M3, included in all their models, is an additional pin that is not controlled by the grooves of the key, like a traditional pin, but by the forward motion of the key. A simple bump cannot cheat the M3 into unlocking position. The added level of security within the lock itself helps in securing doors and windows.

? Schlage -The Schlage Primus model increases the complexity of a lock’s inner workings by adding a second set of pins along the side of the key that must also be properly manipulated to unlock the door.

Additionally, electronic locks, magnetic locks, and locks using rotating disks are not vulnerable to this “bump” attack.

Extra Protection When Securing Doors and Windows

When you are at home, it’s a good idea to activate that second line of lock defense - the hidden deadbolt, which has no external keyhole. Even if someone bumps their way through the first lock, the hidden deadbolt will stop them long enough to make them give up. A criminal who wants the ease of a bump entry will probably not resort to crowbars and kicking once their bump attempt is blocked by a second lock.

Remarks Tobias: “Yes, locks do matter in protecting a residence. Many burglaries are crimes of opportunity. If the locks prevent bumping and that is the chosen method of attack, then the burglary may not occur.”



JONATHAN

Jenny Schweyer asked:


Lock bumping might be referred to as lock picking’s lesser known cousin.  It’s an unfamiliar term at best. It is, however, at least as big a problem as lock picking, and perhaps even more sinister for what it entails. Bumping is a type of lock picking.  Instead of using typical lock picking tools though, all that is required is the use of a bump key.  It has, for this reason, the potential to be much more sinister than lock picking.

One of the biggest problems is that few locks are immune from lock bumping.  This is because most locks work on the same principle.  The most common type of lock, found on every home and business in the world, is the pin-and-tumbler lock.  To understand how lock bumping works, it helps to understand how a pin and tumbler system functions.

Inside every pin and tumbler lock is a cylinder (or key cylinder.)  Within the cylinder is a chamber (the plug) containing stacks of pins.  The pins it contains vary in length.  When the correct key is inserted into the cylinder, the ridges or teeth on the key match the pins inside.  Rotating the key causes the pins to spring apart and the plug to rotate.  This rotation releases the latch from the door jamb.

Trying to insert the wrong key will produce one of two results.  Either the key will not enter the cylinder at all, or, it will enter the cylinder, but won’t be able to rotate the plug because the match is incorrect.

Old-school lock picking usually requires a broad range of tools.  Lock bumping, in contrast, requires only one special key.  A lock bump key looks like an ordinary door key.  It would be unlikely to draw any suspicion, were it to be used to gain illegal entry to a home.

To the untrained eye, a bump key might pass for a regular key.  A closer inspection, though, would reveal that the teeth (or ridges) and the notches are even.  All of the cuts, in fact, are made to maximum depth.  They may also be referred to as “dummy keys” or “999″ keys.  The number “999″ is derived from the fact that the cuts are all made to a depth of nine.

Opening a door lock with a 999 key isn’t as simple as simply inserting and turning.  It does take a particular feel and a certain degree of practice, just as old-fashioned lock picking does.

What is alarming about lock bumping is that only two tools are required: a 999 key and a small “bump tool.”  A would-be criminal will draw much less attention to himself with a bump key than with a set of locksmithing tools.

Two other major factors increase the likelihood that home and business or commercial property owners will become the target of a lock bumper:

1) Lock bumping can be learned from the Internet.  Unfortunately, the World Wide Web is rife with how-to video teaching this practice.

2) Bump keys can be purchased relatively easily over the Internet.  It’s almost as easy as finding how-to videos.

Home and business owners are left in a vulnerable position.  However, there are things property owners to can do to protect themselves:

* Use a deadbolt lock in addition to a cylindrical or other type of door lock.  Deadbolt locks are much harder to bump than other types of locks.  Using both types has long been advised by locksmiths and security experts anyway.  This is just one more good case for doing so.

* Use an after market product.  Anti-bumping products can be purchased at hardware stores and online.  They are almost always worth the expense for the extra protection they provide.

* Purchase anti-bump locks.  Many lock manufacturers have come to recognize the magnitude of the problem.  They have begun to produce locks with extra anti-pick and anti-bump features built right in.

By employing one or more of these methods, property owners may decrease their chances of becoming victims of lock bumping by fifty percent or more.



NUMBERS

John Ward asked:


In order to learn how to get rid of blackheads, you need to first know what causes them. If you know this, you will then be able to put together the best plan of action for defeating this problem.

Blackheads are named as such because they are typically black in colour. It must be remembered that it is not dirt that provides for the coloration but the accumulation of the dark pigment called melanin, skin particles and excess skin debris.

Again it must be stressed that dirt is not the cause of acne. Washing the face or keeping the skin clean at any condition is not to expel the dirt from the skin, it is only to prepare the skin for further treatment.

People do not realise that it is unhealthy to wash the skin for more than twice a day. The reason being that this may further aggravate the condition and actually spread the infection into other sections of the skin tissues.

The other two types of acne are whitehead and mild inflammatory acne known as popules, postules nodules and cysts. Fundamentally, blackhead formations are done mainly due to excess sebum production by the sebaceous glands, trapped in the pores of the skin. If sebum hardens near the upper layers of the skin, it will clog the skin openings and form a plug.

There are two forms of mild inflammatory acne. There is the popules, these are red, inflamed acne and the other type is the pustules. It is characterized by the collection of white matter in the center of the pus.

Under any condition, an acne-inflicted person must not try to force the whiteheads, blackheads or the forms of mild inflammatory acne to burst without the regulation of the doctor as this action may infect the skin and may worsen the state of the skin disorder. Popping out the pustule of the acne or the plugs in whiteheads and blackheads may leave the skin open t bacterial attack that may lead to scarring.

Oral and topical medications must not be used without the supervision of a physician. Principally, topical medications are aids in neutralizing the bacteria found in the skin and when combined with other chemical agents, may help deplete the overproduced sebum, making an allowance for acne spots to eventually heal.

Here are just a few of the ways to remove blackheads.

1. Be sure to exfoliate the area of the skin that is most prone to blackheads. If possible

this should be done up to three or four times a day. This will help to ensure that your

pores of free of dead skin and other oils that may build up and cause these zits to occur.

2. Use creams that are meant to clear away dead skin cells. This will help to expose the blackhead so that you can more easily get rid of it with other treatment options.

3. Try to keep your hair away from your face. Your hair contains greasy oils that can

cause blackheads and even spread infection.

4. Do not over wash your face. Some people are under the impression that the more they wash, the better chance they have of getting rid of blackheads. This is just a myth. Washing your face with soap one or two times a day is plenty.

Overall, you can start the road to clearer skin by following the four tips above.

Disclaimer: All content within this articles is provided for general information only, and should not be treated as a substitute for the medical advice of your own doctor or any other health care professional. Always consult your own doctor if you’re in any way concerned about your health.



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