Viral

Unsettling TikTok shows how someone can break into your hotel room with just a rubber band - and how to stop it

Jocelynn Blair demonstrates how to unlatch a hotel room lock using a rubber band

Jocelynn Blair demonstrates how to unlatch a hotel room lock using a rubber band.

Photo credit: JustinBlair/TikTok.

While they say a good magician never reveals their secrets, Justin Flom, a magician and content creator, has shown us that sometimes, they probably should — at least for the sake of public safety.

The illusionist took to TikTok to film his wife Jocelynn demonstrating a terrifying reality: Hotel room locks — as in, the metal latches in the wall that, when locked, clasp over the door, allegedly keeping it closed — aren’t exactly as effective as you might think. In fact, they’re practically useless should an intruder have just one rather unexpected apparatus: A rubber band.

In the now viral video, captioned, “STOP HOTEL BREAK INS,” Justin and Jocelyn broke down the rubber-band break-in process for their followers. Filming from inside a locked hotel room, we watch with Justin as his Jocelynn unravels the seemingly sturdy lock from the hall, using only a rubber band.

“What is that, what is that,” the inquisitive illusionist continually queries as his wife opened the door, leaving it slightly ajar. “Oh, it’s a rubber band?”

“Yeah, it’s a rubber band,” she concurs, proceeding to tie the band it into knot around the exposed section of lock.

Jocelynn pushes the tied rubber band towards the end of the lock latched over the door.Jocelynn pushes the tied rubber band towards the end of the lock latched over the door.Photo credit: JustinBlair/TikTok.

From there, Jocelynn pulls the untied part of the rubber band towards her, pushing the knotted section towards the end of the lock latched over the door.

“Oh! Uh oh,” Justin exclaims, watching in awe.

With the rubber band properly in place, Jocelynn reveals the final piece of the puzzle: Duct tape. Reaching her arm inside the locked room, she affixes the end and middle of the extended rubber band to the wall with the tape.

Justin observes, repeatedly exclaiming “woah.” We do the same internally.

Finally, Justin closes the door, revealing what Jocelyn’s contraption can truly do: As the door shuts, the rubber band, fastened in place across the wall, instantly yanks open the hotel lock, unlatching it completely.

The rubber band yanks open the hotel lock, unlatching it completely.The rubber band yanks open the hotel lock, unlatching it completely.Photo credit: JustinBlair/TikTok.

Again, Justin yells, “woah.”

Fortunately, Jocelynn didn’t leave viewers high and dry. She went on to share how to prevent an intruder from doing this to your room immediately following the unsettling footage.

“Take this,” she says, grabbing the taped rubber band, and instructs viewers to adhere it to the actual door when the lock is latched. This means, while facing the door, the left of the lock, as opposed to on the wall to the right, which is how she initially broke in. “Reinforce it here with more tape.”

With the new safety precaution in place, Justin tries to open the door — to no avail. “Oh, that snaps back, wow,” he says, impressed. It does, indeed, continually snap the lock back into its proper position — locked.

Thank you, Justin and Jocelyn, for this imperative — albeit alarming — information. I‘ll be sure to stock up on rubber bands in time for my next hotel stay.

Click here to watch the TikTok in full.

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