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Keeping Your Home Secure in a Technological World

Emerging technology once viewed as a convenience, should now be perceived as a double edged sword. Take a look at a few online features criminals are using as a way to gain access to the content in your home and find some ways to use this technology against them.

With unemployment on the rise, crime is bound to increase in high population dense cities. Not only are flash mobs and knock out games a continuing concern, but burglaries are becoming a prevalent issue as well.

Being aware of possible bouts of crime, the technologies that are being used against you and and designing a home defense system around this will help to better protect your home.

They’re Not As Dumb As They Look

With the continuing deterioration of the economy and unemployment numbers going through the roof, overall crime will continue to increase. To some, desperate times call for desperate measures; and some may feel a life of crime is their only alternative. These new found criminals will be more cunning that your run-of-the-mill petty thief. They will be patient and research the best possible way to hit a residence in order to bypass getting caught. That being said, you need to be ready for it and do some research of your own to stay ahead of the game. To beat these criminals, you have to let yourself begin to think like a criminal.

Emerging technology once viewed as a convenience, should now be perceived as a double-edged sword. In order gain a bird’s eye view into your home, thieves are now using Google maps to find the best vantage points. (These thieves used Google Maps to target as many as nine suburban homes in a Chicago neighborhood for break-ins since March 2011, police said.)

iPhone even has an application which gives you detailed characteristics of properties (houses) in USA. In this app, you can either search the map or use GPS coordinates to gather information such as price of the house, number of floors, number of rooms, pictures taken from inside the house if the house was part of any register (letting agencies etc.) before you moved in, and other interesting information.

How To Beat Them At Their Own Game

We are quickly losing our right to privacy thanks to today’s technologies, and we have to find a way to beat them at their own game. You can find apps online to better protect your privacy and information seen on the great wide web. For instance, iPhone has a app that works in conjunction with an external monitoring service and helps you check your home security system while away from the home, send commands from a computer or cell phone, even manage lighting and thermostat controls remotely. Home security systems integrated with Alarm.com will keep you updated on what you want to know about the security of your property while you’re away with email or text message alerts when specific sensors are activated. The cost varies depending on what feature you add to your customized alarm system.

Some home owners are fighting back and using cameras installed on their computers as a video surveillance system to monitor their home. All you need is your PC, a webcam or IP camera, and advanced surveillance software like the popular WebCam Monitor. Ensure that you position web cams strategically in hidden areas, and place the computer that is monitoring the locations in a hidden spot so the criminals do not walk off with the computer.

To further protect your home consider adding some additional home security layers, and using plants. In addition, reinforcing the barriers that keep intruders out is a great way to begin protecting the home.  In the book,  How to Survive The End of The World as we Know It, the author, James Wesley, Rawles lists some examples on how to have a defensible advantage from criminals. Although, this article lists some of these examples, it is highly recommended that you read the book. The following is a constructive list of items you can consider:

  • Reinforced doors and locks.
  • Barred windows or European-style security/storm shutters.
  • Place thorny bushes around windows.
  • Intrusion detection systems.
  • Position web cams strategically in hidden areas.  Place the computer that is monitoring the locations in a hidden spot so the criminals do not walk off with the computer.
  • Create a barrier from approaching vehicles.
  • Put a peep hole in the door.
  • Add a bolt and chain to the door.
  • Guard dogs
  • Infrared (IR) floodlights to illuminate the property (These can be motion-sensor activated).
  • Fence the entire property, if it is not done so already.
  • A gate at the front of the driveway that has spikes at the top to prevent someone from jumping over the fence.
  • Extra fire hydrants in the case that the invaders try to burn you out of your home.
  • Create a safe room or vault to where a family can go to evade their attackers.
  • Create a neighborhood watch.

Take an active stance on your home security and find ways to deter these criminals from breaking into your home. Your safety and security rests in your hands.

This article was originally published at Ready Nutrition™ on December 16th, 2011