With spring just around the corner, criminals are thawing out and starting to scope out their next target. Here are a few tips to stay on top of your home security so your home isn’t on their list!
The first principle of home security is knowing the baseline. Your neighborhood will have one, it’s just a matter of taking the time to know and understand it. What cars are consistently parked where? Who’s at home during the day? Do your neighbors use service companies on a regular basis? What vehicles do those services drive? These are all questions that will help you establish the baseline, but there are many others.
I suggest taking a day off of work in good weather and working outside. Mow the lawn, plant flowers, trim your bushes, stain your fence, anything to allow you to observe what goes on in the neighborhood when you’re typically gone at work. Heck, even a lawn chair in the driveway would achieve the desired result.
The point of knowing your neighborhood’s baseline is to make it faster to recognize when things aren’t normal. This is the first indication that something isn’t right and crime could be on the horizon. I’d wager there’s not a Police Officer around that wouldn’t urge you to report in if you saw something suspicious, even if it turns out to be nothing. While officers make rounds, they rely heavily on citizens like yourself to lead them to crime. Don’t hesitate if you see something. The saying goes, if you see something, say something!
Once your radar is up and alert to your neighborhood activity, you’ll become more situationally aware and even more aware to the removal of potential targets of opportunity. These can be an open garage door you forgot to close, a vehicle you forgot to lock, or even a fence without a lock that not only provides you privacy, but provides a thief with privacy as well once they’re in your backyard.
The name of the game here is to make your home a harder target so that criminals see a secure curb appeal and look elsewhere for an easier target. Are your hedges trimmed back in front of your windows, not giving them a hiding place? Are your trees trimmed back, allowing a passerby to see everything going on and notice a potential break-in? Do your fence gates and exterior doors have security locks installed?
I’ve always believed that the best way to understand a lock’s vulnerabilities is to learn the skill of lock picking. This may seem nefarious and a skill best left for locksmiths and criminals, but it can and will help you as well. Do you know how easy it is to pick a standard pin and tumbler lock on your front door, or that simple padlock installed on your fence? It’s easier than you think! There’s no reason to kick in a door if it’s simple to open.
What’s worse is that if you can’t prove your home was “broken into” the insurance might not even cover it. Meaning that if a criminal can slip in without showing signs of a forced break-in, you might have a hard time proving your loss was the result of a burglary and that’s even scarier.
These are just a few things we’ve covered in our articles and the Home Security eBook I’ve written. Check out our resources and products below for more info. Our members get the eBook for free and while this is a business and I’m pitching things for sale, I’m truly passionate about sharing knowledge on skill-sets like these, especially skills that can help keep you and your family more secure.
~ Bryan Black
Founder & Editor-in-Chief, ITS Tactical
A Definitive Guide to Running a Home Security Assessment
In this eBook, we offer lessons learned in home security, as well as some tips and tricks for making your home a harder target altogether.
Visible Cutaway Practice Locks
These Visible Cutaway Practice Locks enable you to see, as well as feel each pin move independently. Knowing how a lock works both inside and out, will not only help you improve your skills but also learn more about the illusion of security.
ITS Security Seals
The ITS Security Seals provide protection from a common garage door bypass technique used by burglars to hook the emergency release. They’re also great to use as tamper evident seals on things like luggage, gun cases and more.
Dumpster Diving for Sensitive Information
What can thieves learn from your trash? Probably a whole lot more than you think they can. In this short video on ITS, we highlight a few of the ways that you and your loved ones can safeguard against this kind of attack.