Competitive lockpicking growing in US popularity @ Boston.com. Based on what I’ve seen it’s true, more people want to learn how to pick locks just for fun and more events have lock picking sessions and workshops -

While lockpickers thrive on the intellectual thrill of beating all sorts of locks, they oppose attempts to use the skill for mischievous purposes and have laid down universal ethical guidelines: “You never pick a lock you don’t own and you never pick a lock that’s in regular use,” Towne said.

Some lockpickers observe a code of responsible disclosure by providing manufacturers information on weaknesses they discover in locks they defeat — just like responsible computer hackers do when they detect security flaws in software.