Home Security Tips - Think Like a Thief |
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By: Richard Keir Posted: 2007-11-29 04:12:30 |
| You may have noticed that the use of security systems, surveillance cameras, security guards and even 'under-cover' security personnel has increased dramatically in malls and even small mom-and-pop and convenience stores. These are all business that are run to make a profit so you have to assume that the added security is cost effective - that it reduces losses due to theft largely through discouraging the criminals. The first of our home security tips is to just understand that doing something to improve security is worth it and that discouraging theft is the most cost effective approach.As it keeps getting tougher to rip off businesses, where does the worried thief turn? A lot of them turn to burglary and are out there checking out your home as one of their potential new income sources. Despite the movies there are not all that many highly skilled professional burglars and most are lazy, semi-skilled and primarily looking for an easy target so they can feed their drug habit without putting in much effort or taking much of a risk.As a sort of upside down approach to home security tips, lets think about what some of the primary qualifications for a home to become a good target are. A high probability of items worth stealing is one. These days this probably means almost any house, but being able to see into the house can nail down a target if, for example, high value electronic equipment can be seen from the outside.Easy access and, particularly, possible entry points that are concealed from view are attractive features. Tall shrubs or bushes that provide coverage while working on a door or a window make a nice, burglar friendly bonus. An absence of obvious security features such as cameras, motion sensor lights, security monitoring company window decals or yard signs are also inviting. Dogs -- burglars don't like dogs, at least ones in homes they want to rob, so the absence of any indications of a dog can boost a home's burglar popularity quotient. Interestingly, National Rifle Association membership stickers or signs seem to drop a home's popularity. The problem here is that if a burglar can be certain no one is home with a gun waiting to blow him away, then that NRA signage pretty strongly suggests there are guns inside which are always worth stealing.You can see that most of these items are easy to check without being obvious or doing anything particularly suspicious. Take a look at your home from this perspective and see how it rates as a potential target. Some 80% of the homes in the US have no specific protection against burglary except insurance. You can decrease the risk of your home being targeted by eliminating any concealment provided by bushes and trees. especially near entry points. Make certain that valuable and easily portable items such as stereos, TVs, etc., are not visible from the outside. Signs and window decals, whether true or not, reduce your home's attractiveness to criminals. Motion sensor lights and a dummy security camera are inexpensive and an added negative.The home security tips discussed here are primarily ones which will make it more likely that a burglar will decide to move on to a different and presumably easier target. While they do provide a level of enhanced security, you should also consider further steps to make your home more secure and more difficult to break into easily.At Home Security Works you can find more home security tips, and articles and information on home security systems and wireless surveillance systems, security cameras, security devices and more. |
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