Fortress Recalls Gun Safes After 12-Year-Old Dies

More than 60,000 biometric portable gun safes are being recalled after a 12-year-old boy died from a firearm taken from one of the safes, CBS News reports.

Fortress Safe and the US Consumer Product Safety Commission announced on Thursday that various models of biometric gun safes are being recalled “due to a serious safety hazard and risk of death caused by a programming feature that can allow unauthorized access to the safes.”

CPSC cites a recent lawsuit that alleges a 12-year-old boy died from a firearm that was obtained from one of the safes being recalled, and that at least 39 incidents have been reported by consumers of the safes being accessed using fingerprints that weren’t paired with the system.

The products being recalled, which are listed on the CPSC press release, include biometric safes sold under the brand names Fortress, Legend Range & Field, Cabela’s, and Gettysburg. The safes were sold at various retail outlets, including Bass Pro Shops, Dick’s Sporting Goods, and Lowe’s, as well as via online retailers like Amazon and eBay, from January 2019 to October 2023.

The model numbers for the safes being recalled include 11B20, 44B10, 44B10L, 44B20, 55B20, 55B30, 55B30G, 4BGGBP, and 55B30BP. 

Owners are advised to cease using the biometric feature, remove the safe’s batteries, and only use a key to lock and unlock the safe. Customers can contact Fortress Safe for instructions on how to disable the biometric feature and to obtain a replacement safe at no extra cost.

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