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I just flew back from the USA, and found a TSA notice in my suitcase that it had been inspected. I could tell that they checked a couple of items, but thankfully nothing was removed or damaged.

Now the interesting thing is, as far as I can recall, I locked my suitcase using the combination lock, and didn't use the key. When I opened the suitcase, the combination lock was unlocked, but the key locks were locked.

The suitcase is a common "Polo Club" type with a key-operated lock on each latch and a 3-digit combination lock in the middle. I already know the same key works with most of those suitcases, but I wonder how they opened the combination lock.

Edit: Here's a picture of the lock. It's not broken.

enter image description here

aditsu quit because SE is EVIL
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    Is the case zippered? Any tool marks on or near the lock and latch? Any bent areas? Any pinholes that might be for a master key? – Freiheit Dec 01 '14 at 15:09
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    I can open one of those locks by feel in less than 10 seconds. I'm sure many TSA agents can do it even quicker... – Doc Dec 01 '14 at 15:53
  • @Freiheit no, and (I didn't notice any) * 3 – aditsu quit because SE is EVIL Dec 01 '14 at 16:12
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    @Doc really? Could you give more details? I tried and couldn't "feel" anything different except when completely unlocking it. – aditsu quit because SE is EVIL Dec 01 '14 at 16:14
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    @aditsu: google around for things like "combination lock picking". It can be done really quick once you have the feel for it (unless its a really good one, which I have never seen in a suitcase). It can be a fun pastime to rearrange bikes on the schools bike park space for easter... – PlasmaHH Dec 01 '14 at 23:09
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    They locked key locks which you hadn't set? That seems graver than opening the combination one (which they advise they can always do). How can they know for sure that you'll have the key when you get to your destination? – E.P. Dec 02 '14 at 11:00

2 Answers2

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The TSA mandates that luggage can be opened without the owner's presence. Many suitcases therefore have special locks created by a company called Travel Sentry that are designed to be openable with some sort of code/master key. If your lock has a diamond logo like the one in this picture, it is one of those locks.

enter image description here

Image released under CC-BY-SA license by “Baggage Master”.

While I have never tried them personally, you can also find many videos with tricks to reset luggage locks (e.g. with lock-picking tools or by guessing the combination, see comments) and they are obviously not very strong. One way or the other, the TSA can therefore always open a suitcase if they decide to, the best you can hope for is that they don't damage your luggage in the process.

Although they don't quite say that directly, if they want to inspect a locked suitcase with a non-conforming lock, they would presumably simply break it open. So my guess is that either your lock could be reset/opened with some simple tools or you forgot to engage it and they didn't need to.

Googling for “Polo Pierre Riche”, it seems this range of suitcases does come with a TSA lock (even if the diamond logo is not visible on your picture) so the first hypothesis might the right one (although all the TSA locks I have seen do have a keyhole somewhere).

JoErNanO
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Relaxed
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    I confirm the last sentence about breaking the lock, personal experience. – Nean Der Thal Dec 01 '14 at 09:34
  • It's definitely not that kind of lock that's separate from the suitcase. I added a picture. – aditsu quit because SE is EVIL Dec 01 '14 at 10:21
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    @adtisu Both variants exist (see also the Wikipedia article), the picture is there to show the diamond logo, nothing more. – Relaxed Dec 01 '14 at 10:24
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    I can't see any indication that this lock is special in any way. But whether or not it is, how do they actually open it? Do they have a special way to read the combination? Or some kind of device that automatically tries all combinations? – aditsu quit because SE is EVIL Dec 01 '14 at 11:19
  • @aditsu I am not sure all the details are entirely public, apparently there are several techniques depending on the lock. I don't think they ever actually try the combinations. For Travel Sentry locks (the ones with the logo), there is a code on the lock that indicates which tool should be used and then you can find videos showing a strangely shaped “master key”. But yours might be different for all I know. – Relaxed Dec 01 '14 at 11:35
  • So far all the TSA locks I've seen can be unlocked with a key. The combination lock on my suitcase has no place to insert a key. So it's still a mystery... unless I really forgot to lock it the last time i closed it. Anyway, thanks for your input. – aditsu quit because SE is EVIL Dec 01 '14 at 12:07
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    @Relaxed: The "strangely shaped master keys" in that video are not master keys, but simple lockpicking tools. What the video is showing is not "here's what the TSA master key looks like", but that the locks are easy to pick. – hmakholm left over Monica Dec 01 '14 at 12:58
  • @HenningMakholm Maybe, but it sounds like a distinction without a difference. I did use scare quotes, mind you. – Relaxed Dec 01 '14 at 13:01
  • @Relaxed: The point I was trying to make is that if it was a matter of a special "master key" one could at least hope that access to those master keys is tightly controlled. But common lockpicking tools are easy for criminals to get hold of (and probably not even illegal to buy and sell for "educational reasons" in many places). – hmakholm left over Monica Dec 01 '14 at 13:12
  • @HenningMakholm Good point although tight control would seem difficult in any case. Incidentally, would you know if the TSA is actually using something like that or do they have something else? – Relaxed Dec 01 '14 at 13:15
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    Most cheap combination locks can be opened with a bit of patience and a bit of experience. If you put the first key in the right position, then the second key will often move a little bit easier. That would be polite method, they can use brute force instead and you'll need a new lock. – gnasher729 Dec 01 '14 at 15:01
  • The TSA can open a non-Travel Sentry lock even without breaking it on certain bags (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMTXzQ0Vqn8). – gparyani Dec 02 '14 at 02:13
  • @damryfbfnetsi that has absolutely nothing to do with opening a lock – aditsu quit because SE is EVIL Dec 02 '14 at 02:29
  • @aditsu Oh, sorry, I meant opening a bag, but it can be used to bypass a lock. – gparyani Dec 02 '14 at 02:36
  • Your first link regarding the opening bag mandate without the owner present is broken. – Erik Nov 10 '16 at 17:42
  • A TSA lock is a joke. If hundreds of TSA agents have master keys, so do dozens of criminals (at least). – WGroleau Oct 18 '21 at 00:45
  • @WGroleau You can actually buy the full set of master keys for just a few €/$/£ off your favourite online marketplace. Or download 3D models for free and 3D-print your own set. All that just because a careless TSA agent once let somebody take a photo of his set of keys. (Which was bound to happen at some point.) – TooTea Oct 18 '21 at 09:36
  • Yes, I knew about the 3D control files. But I'm fully convinced that master keys were on the black market within a week after they were invented. – WGroleau Oct 18 '21 at 17:40
  • With or without a master key, a suitcase lock is not going to provide much protection. I do not use one myself but I guess the main benefits are deterring the most casual theft and making it difficult to tamper with the suitcase without being detected. It could perhaps be compared to wrapping your suitcase in plastic? – Relaxed Oct 19 '21 at 10:32
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If your suitcase closes with a zip, then it can be opened with a normal biro (the ubiquitous cheap Bic office biro works particularly well). Simply hold the biro so it points along the zip, with the nib end pointing at an angle into the zip teeth. Then press down. The pen disengages the teeth of the zip, and you can pull them apart by running the pen or your finger along the zip. To reclose, simply pull the zipper over the opened part, and then back again. This works even on those suitcases with two zip pulls that lock together. Travel security like this method because it's fast, basically undetectable, and doesn't require any special tooling or any co-operation from the lock manufacturers.

anaximander
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    I don't know what a "biro" is, but I know zippers can be opened with a pen. I'm not sure how obvious it is from the picture, but my suitcase doesn't close with a zipper. I hate those suitcases :p – aditsu quit because SE is EVIL Dec 01 '14 at 13:48
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    One of these pens is a classic example. In some countries they're referred to as "rollerball" pens, or just "bic", after the main manufacturer of the type. – anaximander Dec 01 '14 at 13:56
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    As per Wikipedia, a biro is a brand of ballpoint pens, that is used as a generic term in Britain and other countries. – Alexander Dec 01 '14 at 13:58
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    biro = Bi(c) Ro(llerball), I assume... – Joe Dec 01 '14 at 15:08
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    Actually, it's the surname of the guy who invented the ballpoint pen, László Bíró. They were known as Bíró pens, and were trademarked under that name. – anaximander Dec 01 '14 at 15:19
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    Just a note that where I'm from, "rollerball" is a movie and just "bic" means a lighter. Never heard "biro" before but when I hear "ballpoint" or just "pen" I think of a generic, well... ballpoint pen. – Calvin Scherle Dec 01 '14 at 17:36