Fortress Safe, based in Naperville, Illinois, has announced a recall of nearly 61,000 biometric gun safes due to a significant safety hazard and potentially fatal malfunction that could grant unauthorized access to the firearms stored inside.
The recall was issued in conjunction with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), which alerts owners that, despite what they might believe about having properly set up the fingerprint feature for access, the safes are actually left in a default open mode.
In this default mode, unauthorized users, including children, can access the safes and potentially remove any dangerous items, including firearms.
Fortress Safe and the CPSC have announced the recall of 61,000 biometric gun safes due to a malfunction that could allow anyone, including children, to access the firearms inside.
A recent lawsuit claims that a 12-year-old boy accessed a firearm inside one of the affected safes and subsequently died, according to the CPSC.
Additionally, there have been 39 reports from consumers indicating that the safes were accessed using unregistered fingerprints.
The recall includes nine models: Fortress Portable Safe with Biometric Lock (11B20); Fortress Personal Safe with Pop-up Door and Biometric Lock (44B10); Legend Range & Field Personal Safe with Pop-up Door and Biometric Lock (44B10L); Fortress Medium Personal Safe with Biometric Lock (44B20); Fortress Quick Access Safe with Biometric Lock (55B20);
Fortress Large Quick Access Safe with Biometric Lock (55B30); Gettysburg Large Quick Access Safe with Biometric Lock (55B30G); Cabela’s 4 Gun Safe with Biometric Lock (4BGGBP); and Cabela’s Biometric Personal Safe (55B30BP).
The safes were sold at retailers such as Bass Pro Shops, Cabela’s, Scheel’s, Sportsman’s Guide, Optics Planet, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Gander, Rural King, Lowe’s, and several other stores nationwide, as well as through Amazon and eBay, between January 2019 and October 2023, with prices ranging from $44 to $290.
Owners of the recalled safes are advised to immediately cease using the biometric feature, remove the batteries, and rely solely on the key if storing firearms.
Consumers can contact Fortress Safe for instructions on disabling the biometric feature and obtaining a free replacement safe.
Fortress Safe has not yet responded to inquiries from Fox News Digital regarding the recall. All recalled safes were manufactured in China and were imported and distributed by Xpedition LLC, operating as Fortress Safe.
