House Safety Tips: Ways to Burglar-Free your Home

Written by: Sumita Roy

The thought of burglary is a thing we like to avoid even in our wildest dreams. However, we invite burglars by practicing some of the very careless mistakes. If you think that an intruder is one of those traditional black masked figures then you are wrong. He is a simple walking-talking person with a ‘cover’ of a commoner. You cannot distinguish him in a crowd. 

At no time of the day is your house immune to burglars. And if something happens to you, the financial loss is the first thing that hits you hard and then comes the series of trauma and nightmares, in short the psychological impact. You never feel completely safe within your ‘safe haven’ again.

The only way to defend your household is by pre-empting their plans and taking utmost preventive measures. They look for usual signs of habitation, careless mistakes and open entry ways- only when your home fits these criteria do most of the burglars break in. Here are some of the things they look around for:

      1.  Burglars mostly target unoccupied homes- Places which they can leave undetected. If a package is left in the doorway of a house, day in and day out, even people not intending to notice it will know that you have been out for long. Same thing with newspapers and other home delivered objects. This is how most of the times a house become susceptible to burglary.

Signs of life usually shoos them away. They can fooled into believing that you are present within the household by using strategic lighting ideas, loud broadcasts etc. Attaching night timers to TV sets, radios and lighting and making them go off as soon as dusk falls, is an effective way to keep most of them out of your premises. Bold burglars still peer through the window to detect signs of life therefore window shades should also be closed to make their suspicion stronger.

To do:  
   ·         Place timers on lights, television, radios and other electronic devices used on day to day basis.
·         Ask neighbors to conduct a daily check and let them keep your mail in case you are not in town for long.

      2.   Remain inconspicuous to burglars: Almost 80%  of the burglars are not looking for any kind of trouble

which can evolve from physical confrontation. You can use it on your side to keep your house free from their intrusion.

After dark, the best form of defense is to use lighting, lots of it. Interior lighting and blazing exterior makes them detectable to neighbors who are keeping a close watch on your house. Use of motion sensors is also a cheap (they consume less energy) and effective way to keep them at a distance. Another effective way  is to keep a barking dog. Even if it is not huge and scary, its barking is enough to make the neighbors aware of the intrusion within your household.

To do:

·         Flood light within the household

·         Install motion detectors

·         Keeping pets, especially dogs

      3.   Check on the openings: During springs and summers all of us like to draw our window curtains and open its shutters to enjoy clean and fresh breathe of air. But by doing this we also create an easy entry way for the burglars. Thieves resort to breaking in when they have no other option. Before that they try each and every entryway- doors/ windows. If by mistake you leave out anything open than they have all the access they need.

Of course in this case ground floor and first floor dwellers are more susceptible to these kinds of attacks. However by using make shift ladder and climbable trees burglars can also gain access to higher floors.

Even when you are home and going to sleep make sure that all the doors and windows are closed and locked with a dead bolt. Also in an individual home, when your family is having a hustling and bustling dinner on the ground floor dining room, your first floor and second floor can get invaded by quiet thieves.

To do:

·         Put a deadbolt on all the doors

·         Give your spare keys to reliable neighbors instead of putting in the pots and under door mats. Burglars check these obvious places.

·         Heavy rods in front of windows prevent complete opening of windows. Professionally

                        installed doors and windows further prevent tampering of screws that secure them.

·         Keep your yards free of rocks as thieves may use them to break in.

·         Security services can help you with limited entry windows and kick resistant door panels.

·         Even if your domestic help is a highly reliable individual still check the doors and windows before leaving your house empty. A mistakenly opened window can cause a break in later on.

      4.  Maintain and trim the shrubberies and plants that grow around your household. Large bushes can provide cover to burglars. Tall and dense shrubs can help them remain concealed for as long as they want. They can even hide from the eye of your neighbors and wait for the right time. Therefore a regular trimming the over growth is a good option.
     To do:

      ·         Trim the shrubs so that they remain below the window sill and their breaking in does not go undetected.

      ·         Install motion detectors near the shrubs.

      

      5.  Burglary increase during the holidays. During Diwali, Christmas, summer vacations we love going out for the weekend to enjoy the outskirts or hill stations. The thieves schedule their heists accordingly. Large family gatherings are also another attraction to them. Often we misplace expensive gift items or leave them unattended by chance; burglars can take advantage of situations like these and haul away valuable things from under your nose.

To do:

·         Keep the gift boxes and other valuable, even if these are on the first and second floor, away from the windows.
·         Ask neighbors to house sit / park their cars on your driveway so that your house seems occupied frequently without a regular sequence.

      6.  Determined burglars use innovation. Those who are determined to loot your home will not be dissuaded by your presence within the premises. They will introduce themselves as cable installers, utility employees, or even police officers. Whatever be the rank / stature of the person standing at your door, ask for an identification card before letting them within your premises.

Another very common tactic is they pose as your delivery guy. This is a highly effective technique because the presence of a delivery guy / uninformed personnel will never be questioned, even by your neighbors.
To do:

      ·         Check for identification whenever a uniformed personal of a pizza guy knocks your door without your expectation.

      ·         Instruct the neighbors to call you as soon as they spot a truck parked near your premises when you are not home.

      7.  Security cameras can be deactivated by burglars. Astute thieves are careful in their survey of property. They look for cameras and disable them as soon as they spot one. Surveillance is a technology that works in favor of the home owners. New internet enabled web cams do real time monitoring and recording. They are

small and can be effectively hidden in plain sight. Internet enabled webcams give the owner direct view of what is happening within in his premises, wherever he is.
To do:

·         Install webcams especially in the most accessible and hidden areas. In the driveways and doorways install more than two thee cameras to get view from different angles.
·         Call 100 immediately as you spot an intruder.

      8.  Be prepared for the worst. Unfortunately, for home owners there are numerous types of burglars out there and you do not know which one is spotting your home and you. First are the opportunistic ones who hunt for the nearest empty houses. Second are those who keep a standard vigilance for quite a time. These thieves know the time of your arrival/ departure etc. They know almost everything regarding your schedule.

They attack when you are not within the household. Third is the special locksmith kind of people. These are the most dangerous sort who use master key/bump key to pick at your lock. They can open almost 90% of the traditional locks.

To do:

·         It is not just police who can check for stranger intrusion. Observant neighborhood can also keep a steady vigilance. If they catch sight of unknown cars or stranger picking at your door, they call the police immediately.
·         You can use skilled locksmith to install locks that cannot be picked.
·         Use of electronic keypads is another way to keep your household safe from intrusion.

      9. High tech methods act as advantage for most burglars. Do not assume that it is only you who is reaping the benefits of modern technology. There are many others who do the same, including the thieves.

It is through use of smart cards or innovative use of modern technology they can break in your home without a hitch. And practically it is not possible for any of us to go through all the methods.

To do:

·         You can ask an expert to view your property and ask advice regarding the lack of safety procedures and hence upgrade it.
·         If not completely updated, try to remain at least not outdated.

      

      10.   Internet as a medium for burglars: it is not only common hardworking, earning bread and butter man who uses internet and social networking sites to meet people. 

     

Burglars also have access to these networks and they try to befriend people, get details about their household and then plan an assault. Through these they gain easy access to people’s property. This does not mean that you should not meet other people or be paranoid all the time.

To do:

      ·         A bit of carefulness can help you understand the person’s motives

      ·         It is better not to share your housing and family details unless and until you are sure of his intent.

The right security measures can discourage expert as well as desperate burglars from entering your premises. Only following the above given security tips can help you protect your household from external and unknown intrusion and aid you to live a peaceful life, even when you are not home.