Ottawa Locksmith Services and the Canadian Security Intellig

by ARIEL ROSEN

It might sound surprising, and a far cry from the glamorous world of international espionage, but one of the most important skills regularly sought by intelligence agencies the world over, is locksmithing. One such intelligence gathering agency, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), regularly relies on Ottawa locksmith services to perform tasks, which may sound mundane, but are of vital importance to Canada��s national security.

Based in Ottawa, the CSIS are charged with collecting, monitoring, and analyzing intelligence on possible threats to the national security of Canada. Although some of their work no doubt involves the kind of stunts seen in movies, the day-to-day reality is much more mundane, and often calls on the services of a local locksmith.

The typical Ottawa locksmith performs a range of locksmithing services associated with improving the security in and around commercial and residential properties. Locksmiths in Ottawa also assist with car lockouts and broken keys stuck in the ignition. Fitting new locks on doors and windows, re-keying locks, and fitting high security locks are all within a typical working day for an Ottawa locksmith. Locksmiths are also highly skilled at gaining entry to properties without causing damage to doors and locks.

All these services are in demand by intelligence agencies such as the Canadian Security Intelligence Service. There are numerous examples. There was an Ottawa locksmith who was hired to gain access to a deposit box in an Ottawa bank, because the CSIS suspected that the box contained large sums of cash that were to be used to purchase materials for making a bomb. Another Ottawa locksmith was hired to break into the apartment of a member of a home grown terror cell. There was the incident when an Ottawa locksmith was asked to open the door of a vehicle left in a downtown car park. The vehicle was thought to have been hired by agents of a foreign country.

The question that begs to be asked is why an organization such as the CSIS, which presumably has sufficient resources to recruit and train their own locksmiths, would decide to outsource the work to a Toronto or Ottawa locksmith. The answer is that there are logistical and security-related advantages to outsourcing the work. Locksmithing is a highly skilled profession that requires a long period of training. Also, outsourcing enables intelligence agencies to retain a greater degree of secrecy about their operations. Finally, it is advantageous to use the services of a locksmith with specific local knowledge.

So next time you watch a Jason Bourne movie, see if the hero would have been better off hiring a local locksmith.