Five Tips for Protecting Your Family & Home

Written by Posted On Wednesday, 10 January 2018 14:13
Home Security Home Security

Have you ever asked yourself “Are the things I hold closest truly secure?” In an era of recurrent natural disasters, a shifting geopolitical climate, cyber warfare and endemic violent crime, what’s truly frightening is the staggering number of emergencies and accidents that go unaccounted. To put the severity of these trends into perspective, Department of Labor statistics indicate careers in local government, such as law enforcement and first responders are experiencing a 52% growth rate given current events. Today, we will discuss how to mitigate risk and increase security with five tips for protecting your family and home. Let’s get started.


Automated Locks

People today are busier than ever, often to the point where remembering a trivial task such as locking your doors can be difficult to remember while you’re in a hurry. Installing automated locks is a great solution to forgo the risk of an unsecured home, very similar to keyless entry features you’d find in your vehicle.  The mechanism is simple, an electronic lock pairs with your homes Wi-Fi network and users are able to pair their lock with their cell phone to lock and unlock their doors remotely. Some electronic locks also feature a camera, so you can see who’s at your door at any time.

Track Internet Usage

Daily internet usage increases exponentially, think about how vulnerable your network is to cybercrime. Law enforcement is doing their best to counter security breaches, but they can only do so much given the increasing sophistication of cyber attacks. Our data is vulnerable to hacking, identity theft, malicious software, and data theft; meaning it’s up to us to ensure our networks are secure. Keeping tabs on your internet usage and teaching your family good online safety tips will go a long way. Keep your browsers spam filter on, ensuring you’re only opening trusted links, installing quality anti-virus software and changing your passwords regularly. 

Smart Home Security Systems

A burglary takes place every 18 seconds in the United States.  Criminals tend to adapt to the times, so the run of the mill home security system no longer offer much protection. Technological innovations in wireless technology and increased connectivity via IoT (Internet of Things), smart home security systems are significantly more advanced than previous proprietary security systems. An excellent smart home security system will include many components that work in conjunction, such as wireless motion sensors in your homes access points, remote monitoring, light and lock controls, all under secure user access that can be obtained with a push of a button. 

Get to Know Your Neighbors

Teamwork is what makes the dream work. The community is one of the most excellent deterrents of crime within a given demographic area. Taking the time to build a relationship with neighbors will go a very long way in promoting awareness and insight, giving your home multiple sets of eyes instead of one and vise versa. Think about it, if no one knows anyone, they won't be aware of your comings and goings, and nobody will know what’s ordinary and what’s suspicious. There are several ways of going about this, from organizing a neighborhood watch program, community clean-up initiatives or something as simple as introducing yourself will go a long way.
  

Change the Locks When You Move

Unless you have a newly constructed home, there’s a good chance that there are copies of keys for your locks in circulation still, be it previous occupants, landlords, etc. A simple swap of your home's locks will significantly reduce the risk of a successful break-in. As I mentioned in the first section, electronic locks are an excellent deterrent, especially for an angry former tenant, there is nothing more frightening, or humbling than having a stranger walk into your home uninvited. It’s a lesson to learn through smart practices instead of experience. If you haven’t yet, change your locks.  

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