The idea of a robbery or burglary can be scary and intimidating. You may worry about the area of your house and all of your personal belongings. You may even worry about your commercial building and the likeliness of it getting broken into after business hours. However, with the right amount of prevention and planning, you can ensure that all of your belongings and your house is safe from intruders. There are steps that any property owner should complete to properly protect everything they own and to prevent the feeling of safety being taken away from them.
Lock all doors at all times
Some property owners get lazy about locking their doors. If they make a quick run down the street to the local convenient store, they may leave everything unlocked to prevent bringing a house key. They may run to the community school to pick up their children, forgetting to lock the front door. Despite what most people believe about break ins, most of them occur during daylight hours. Your neighbors may not be home or may not suspect anything. Get in the habit of locking your doors, even just for a couple of minutes.
Lock and secure all windows
Window security is often overlooked. However, criminals looking for a way in will almost always try the windows first. That is because many people leave them unlocked. Most windows come with locks, so be sure that you and your family get in the habit of using them. Also, regularly test your window locks to be sure that they are still properly working.
Alarm system
An alarm system is probably the best way to protect your house, your business, and your family members. An audio-based intrusion detection system works on the constant monitoring of movement in your home. You simply notify your alarm systems when you are leaving and if the audio-based intrusion detection system picks up any movement after that, it will sound and the local authorities will be called. Even with the many benefits of access control systems, only 1 out of 7 businesses has an alarm system.
Alarm systems not only dispatch local authorities immediately, they also provided a warning to criminals. Even during impulsive, unplanned burglaries, more than 50% of the intruders said they would discontinue the burglary if they discovered an alarm. Most criminals do not want to get caught, so most will flee at the sight of the audio-based intrusion detection system. Additionally, in a study of convicted burglars, approximately 83% of the offenders said they would attempt to determine if an alarm was present before attempting a burglary.
Video surveillance
While normal access control systems sound an alarm and prevent many break ins, they do not identify the criminal. In many cases, a video surveillance system can be helpful, because the intruder can be identified and them imprisoned. Most business security camera systems include video streaming also. This is important in the business setting, as many business break ins are employee related.
Video systems can also reduce the fear and feeling of reduced safety that is often accompanied with a break in. Families and business owners may be left feeling uneasy, knowing that the criminal is still out there. They may wonder if the break in was an employee or a friend of the household. The video system can identify the criminal, allowing the family to relax. Some audio-based intrusion detection systems can be equipped with automated systems that also include video recording.
A successful break in causes much more loss than your personal or commercial belongings. You also lose the feeling of safety that your home should always provide. Any property owner that values their safety and property contents needs to take carefully planned steps in securing their property, at all times. Always lock your doors, inspect your windows, and install an audio based alarm system. If possible, also install video alarm systems that allow you to identify the burglar.