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15 Home Safety and Security Tips

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There’s always a perfect time to assess your home’s safety and security. Do you employ all of the following practices?1H

  1. Make sure your house’s roofing is fire resistant. If not, get it remodeled.
  2. Not only should you have smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, but you should also regularly inspect them for lint and dust buildup. Plus, they should all be integrated, so if one goes off in the kitchen, the ones in the bedrooms and even basement get triggered.
  3. If your mailbox isn’t one that locks, get one, so this way you won’t be leaving outgoing mail with sensitive information sitting in an unlocked box.
  4. If you need an extension cord for an outside appliance, make sure it’s one that says: “Suitable for Use with Outdoor Appliances.”
  5. Never leave any stickie notes on your door saying you’ll be back in a few minutes…even if you’re expecting a delivery.
  6. Know that if there’s a power outage, the food in your freezer will last for up to 48 hours. Have a backup generator or only stock up on dry/canned goods.
  7. When you’re done using an oily rag, set it outside to dry, then put it in a metal can with a lid. An oily rag is flammable even when not in contact with a flame.
  8. If a battery is non-rechargeable, don’t try to charge it, as this could make it explode.
  9. To repel an intruder from getting in through your windows, plant thorny bushes around them.
  10. If you have a home security system, display the company’s decals on your windows and signs in your yard. If you don’t have a system, you can get these items online; display them anyways.
  11. When you get a snowfall, clear a path to your door, and better yet, shovel the driveway—even if you’re not going anywhere, as this will make burglars think someone is home.
  12. Before leaving on any extended errands and especially travel, set your home phone’s ringer to mute so that an incessantly ringing phone doesn’t get a burglar’s attention that you’re not home.
  13. Before leaving town, put a vacation hold on your mail and newspaper, and tell a trusted adult of your travel plans.
  14. Before leaving for a trip, arrange with a trusted person to have them park their car in your driveway.
  15. While you’re enjoying your vacation, avoid posting about it on social media. Burglars peruse social media to see who’s not home.

Robert Siciliano personal and home security specialist to BestHomeSecurityCompanys.com discussing burglar proofing your home on Fox Boston. Disclosures.

15 Tips to Keep Your Home Safe During the Holiday Season

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Most people don’t like that “fall back” time change every November, but you know who does? Burglars. Burglars love to “fall back” because it gives them more time to practice their criminal activities thanks to the earlier veil of darkness. This is also a convenient time for them as the holiday season is upon us and most people have a lot of newly purchased gifts in our homes. Perfect bait for burglars.

2BIn general, most homeowners will take precautions around Christmas time to prevent fires due to Christmas lights, yet they do not take extra security measures to prevent home robbery. Though fire prevention is certainly important, your home is far more likely to attract the eyes of a burglar than to go up in flames. So, here are 15 ways that you can keep the burglars away:

  1. Keep doors locked at all times. This is true even when you are home, and even when it’s light out.
  2. Keep your windows locked, even those on the second floor. Burglars DO have climbing skills.
  3. Use door reinforcements and top-flight locks.
  4. Keep the curtains and blinds closed. This will ensure that no one can take a peek at your valuables.
  5. Install security films on the windows. These help to prevent the penetration of objects such as a baseball bat or crow bar.
  6. Give your home a “lived-in” look with a home automation technology system. Many of these can be controlled by a model device or scheduled to turn lights on or off at a specific time.
  7. Collect your newspaper and mail as soon as they arrive.
  8. Place a large pair of men’s work boots near the door, and make sure they are scuffed up to make them look worn.
  9. Put a large dog bowl near the entryways of the home, but make sure it looks realistic. Do this by adding a chewed up toy or large leash to the scene.
  10. Make sure there is no shrubbery crowding entry points of the home.
  11. Go to Google news, and type in the phrase “door kicked in” along with your city and state. You will be shocked by the results. To protect yourself, consider a device such as Door Devil, which is a high-level door reinforcement device.
  12. If you have a garage, make sure you are packing and unpacking gifts from the car inside of the garage so no one can see what you purchased.
  13. Don’t advertise your Christmas gift purchases on social media, as many thieves use social media to find potential victims.
  14. Make an investment into a home security system. The best systems provide a clear view of what is happening in the home on your mobile device when you are not there.
  15. If you have a car parked out in the drive, place a pair of men’s gloves on the dash. Most burglars will think twice if they believe there is a large man living in the home.

Robert Siciliano is a home and personal security expert to DoorDevil.com discussing Anti-Kick door reinforcement on YouTube. Disclosures.

How to store Water for Survival

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What do you really know about water storage? Below you’ll find information that you probably never even thought of before, or information that contradicts what you’ve always believed to be correct.

1MStorage barrels. These can remain on cellar or basement cement that’s not heated. Cooler cement will not transfer toxins into the barrels. However, garage cement will get heated by the driveway, so in that case, place barrels on floor boards. In addition, some of your water should be stored in portable bottles for easier handling.

Reusing bottles. Filling old juice and soda bottles with water is fine as long as the plastic is rated “PET” or “PETE.” Don’t use milk jugs. If you’re still concerned about leached plastic chemicals, treat the water at the time of consumption, not before you store it.

Boiling (212 degrees). A full boil is not necessary to kill bacteria; heating at 160 degrees for 30 minutes, or 185 degrees for three minutes, will burn less fuel than boiling for the popular 10 minutes.

Pool water. The FDA says pool water is safe to drink up to 4 PPM of chlorine.

Nearby river. Make sure you have iodine tablets ready. Keep in mind during a water shortage, the river will be bedlam, what with everyone else going for it.

Amount stored. Don’t just store a month’s worth. A disaster could cause a year-long or even several-year water shortage.

How much water does one person need? One gallon a day. But this includes for hygiene and cooking, and unforeseen medical needs.

Food vs. water. Though food has calories and water has zero, water is much more important to the body. A few days without any water and you’ll be dragging yourself on the ground, whereas a few days without food, but with plenty of water, and you’ll still be in good shape. And sports drinks and soda do not replace water.

Taste. Stored water will taste bad because it’s been without oxygen. Before drinking, pour it back and forth between two glasses to replenish oxygen.

Robert Siciliano personal and home security specialist to BestHomeSecurityCompanys.com discussing burglar proofing your home on Fox Boston. Disclosures.

Think Your Door can’t get Kicked in, Think Again

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Part of my role as security guy is to keep tabs on the crime climate around the globe. Recently I kept seeing article after article about burglaries with one common theme: “door kicked in”. Don’t believe me? See below. But before you do, probably all of these could have been prevented with Door Reinforcement Technology.

2B9/17/15 Alabama; Front door kicked in at Cahaba Road residence:
The call came in around 2:47 a.m., and officers found an unknown suspect kicked in the front door of a residence to gain entry.

9/21/15 Illinois; Bloomington Police investigating home invasion:
According to Sarah Mayer with BPD, officers were called Saturday to a home that had the door kicked in. Officers say that the resident of the home told them a young black male entered her bedroom and pointed a handgun at her, telling her to lay face down.

9/22/15 Michigan; Couple uses ‘special skills’ to help solve their own burglary:
Sergio and Maura Rodriguez returned to their Southside home on July 17 to find their front door kicked in. Burglars had stolen the couple’s television and Maura’s purse containing her Lone Star and debit cards.

9/23/15 Alabama; Law enforcement blotter:
Caller checking on location for owner, door kicked in, Ashby 2 men with 31 previous arrests nabbed in Hoover break-in 9/21/15 The break-in happened about 3:15 p.m. Thursday in the 5000 block of Tree Crossings Parkway at Ridge Crossings Apartments, said Capt. Gregg Rector. The resident arrived home to find his door kicked in. When he went inside, he interrupted two burglars.

9/24/15 Alaska; Man admits to trying to steal Toyo stove, charged with first-degree burglary:
The homeowner called troopers about 11 a.m. and said he arrived home to find his door kicked in and a man trying to steal his Toyo.

9/24/15  South Carolina; Police Blotter for Sept. 24: A 58-year-old Aiken woman reported Monday that it looked as if a nearby vacant house on Springfield Church Road was burglarized. Deputies found the back door kicked in and several appliances missing from inside.

9/25/15 Georgia; Police Blotter Residential Burglary:
800 block of Loridans Drive—A front door was kicked in and a patio door was tampered with. An Apple MacBook Pro, a black Kindle Fire, Skull Candy headphones, a Wells Fargo checkbook, a PlayStation 4 with controllers, a Burberry watch, a JOS A Bank watch, a white laundry basket, an Xbox with controllers and four games, four watches, an Amazon Fire HD7 and 500 Pesos were taken.

And

100 block of 26th Street—The top of a condo’s door lock was punctured and the door was kicked in. A MacBook Pro laptop, an Apple iPad, jewelry, iPhone 3GS, Apple iPad, Social Security card and personal papers were taken.

And

900 block of Cardova Drive—A homeowner received a text about his alarm sounding but refused police because he didn’t want to be fined. A neighbor discovered the front door kicked in and a TV from the living room was in the driveway. No other items were taken.

And

1800 block of Wellbourne Drive—A 60-inch Sony TV a WII controller, a diamond ring, an Apple MacBook Air, an Apple Thunder Bolt display, a MacBook Pro, two Apple keyboards and wireless mice, a Canon camera, a Sony video camera and a external hard drive were taken when a house’s front door was kicked in.

Now don’t think for one second, “Well I don’t live in Alabama or wherever, so I’m OK”. Wrongo bongo. Go to GoogleNews , type your Town and or state and “Door kicked In” and you will be amazed at how many results come up. Doors, without reinforcement technology are useless. Install high-grade door reinforcement technology. Door Devil, is the door jamb reinforcement I use.

Robert Siciliano is a home and personal security expert to DoorDevil.com discussing Anti-Kick door reinforcement on YouTube. Disclosures.

Surveillance Video captures Home Invasion

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A man was assaulted by three or four men when he arrived home, through his garage door at 5:40 a.m. It’s very apparent that the attackers knew he’d be arriving home at around this time and decided to wait for him, says a report at ksla.com.

2BThis recent home invasion occurred in the Dogwood South subdivision in Louisiana. Though video surveillance recorded the crime, it’s not clear who the assailants are, as they were masked. Detectives are working hard at getting some leads.

The man, along with his wife, were bound with duct-tape. The man suffered minor injuries. The couple’s two young children were not harmed. The assailants made off with money and jewelry.

Needless to say, neighbors are unraveled, and the victims do not want to appear on camera for a news interview. The presence of police that lingered around the victims’ house went anything but unnoticed, so a post went up on the sheriff’s department Facebook page.

Rumors had developed that there were more home invasions in Dogwood South, but the Facebook page straightened this out by reporting “This simply isn’t true.”In fact, it’s been a very long time since the last home invasion in this area.

Residents should not equate the vehicle burglaries in the area with the crime of home invasion.

The Facebook post is asking that people call in tips to 318-965-2203.

I guess the good news is that, unlike some home invaders, these crumbs spared their victims’ lives. But now the victims probably keep wondering if the assailants, who were armed, will return.

Could home invaders be waiting for you? You just never know. Certainly, the victim in this story never thought something like this could happen as he arrived home.

  • Have pepper spray in your home and car, ready to pull out.
  • Look carefully around before you exit your car in the dark.
  • Have the pepper spray in your hand.
  • Close the garage immediately; don’t let it linger open.
  • Make sure no obscuring shrubbery is growing near any entrances to your house or near any windows.
  • Before entering your car, even if it’s been in the garage, look in the back seat. You just never know if a dangerous person could have somehow gotten in and is waiting for you.

Robert Siciliano personal and home security specialist to BestHomeSecurityCompanys.com discussing burglar proofing your home on Fox Boston. Disclosures.

Internet of Things and Home Security

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Hah, that dual chamber deadbolt and the door jamb reinforcement! Yup, they’re good at keeping thieves from getting to your jewelry box and stash of $100 bills, but what about your bank accounts and identity?

5HIf you have any “smart” gadgets in your house, cybercriminals may be able to hack into these and burrow straight to your financial information, credit card information, Social Security number and everything else about you—and rip you off like no masked man picking your front door lock can.

In vulnerable devices, a hacker can gain access to your bank account number, passwords, usernames, etc., through your “connected” thermostat, baby monitor, even home security system. The Internet of Things is a godsend to cyberthieves. In short, if something in your house is wireless, it’s hackable, says a report on forbes.com.

Now this isn’t to say that you’d better toss that smart baby monitor or milk-spoilage detector, but it simply means that now is as good a time as ever to be aware of how hackers could exploit these gadgets. And that people should weigh the benefits and risks of convenience vs. hackability.

For example, will your life really be easier if your connection to the Internet is activated by your voice rather than finger on a mouse? So rather than go the route of convenient gadgets that don’t consider security, choose security devices that come with “smart” security features too.

For ideal security, all of a home’s connected devices should communicate with each other. This can’t happen if gadget 1 is from Company A; gadget 2 from Company B, and so on.

Again, there’s no need to fear that the connected baby monitor will give a hacker in Russia access to your savings account, but the Internet of Things has reached a point where we must give some pause to all of the possibilities.

Robert Siciliano personal and home security specialist to BestHomeSecurityCompanys.com discussing burglar proofing your home on Fox Boston. Disclosures.

How to Choose a Home Security Safe

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Home safes aren’t just for expensive jewels and wads of $100 bills. They can be for anything you’d be crushed about if it were stolen, lost or burnt in a fire. This could be a birthday card that your child made for you when they were five, or a photo of you and your grandmother.

4HHome safes come in all sorts of designs and sizes. An article on community.homeclick.com provides tips in choosing the home safe that best suits your needs. Let’s first look at the three types of locking mechanisms: keypad combination, cylinder dial and keyed lock.

Keypad Combination

  • Fast access
  • Can be customized
  • Uses batteries (which means replacement is necessary).
  • This type of safe may be small enough for a burglar to just carry away, intending to figure out how to open it later. Bolt it to the floor.

Manual Dial

  • Requires knowledge and skill (including a screwdriver) to change the combination.
  • Because of this, most people settle for the manufacturer’s preset combination.

Keyed Lock

  • Some models/brands can be easily picked with paperclips; YouTube is full of tutorials. Buyer beware.
  • No thief is intimidated by this kind of locking system. At worst, he’ll just take the safe with him and deal with getting it open once he’s home. Bolt it to the floor.
  • Nevertheless, these safes can protect from water and fire damage.

A big heavy safe with a good locking mechanism is not inviting to a burglar. Ideally, the safest safe is big, heavy and has a digital or manual dial locking system. Even if you have only a few valuables, a big hulking safe will deter a burglar. But if you’re not concerned about burglars, at least be concerned about fire protection—or rather, slowing down a fire.

The ability of a safe to withstand searing heat varies. They are rated for this ability. For example, says the community.homeclick.com article, a common rating is that of one hour at 350 degrees. But this rating probably will not protect sensitive electronic items in a house fire. All safes have a fire and water protection rating.

Robert Siciliano personal and home security specialist to BestHomeSecurityCompanys.com discussing burglar proofing your home on Fox Boston. Disclosures.

Introducing Angee Home Security

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Meet Angee.

ANG2Angee (pronounced like Angie) will revolutionize home security in more ways than one. One of the features that sets Angee apart from other home security systems is that this system can learn about you and your family members, and then operate accordingly. Angee is the future, but this future is now here.

Check out what Angee offers:

  • Operates even during a power outage due to a built-in battery and 1.5 Gb storage.
  • Is small and portable, a handsome cylindrical design that can blend in with home decor.
  • Has data military grade encryption.
  • Motion and proximity detection tags that can be quickly and easily placed at all entryways and windows, so you need only one of the small portable units, regardless of the size of your house. Thus, a detection tag in a room on the third floor will allow the Angee unit, which is on the first floor, to tell when someone enters that third-floor room.
  • Recognition of household members’
  • Can connect to your mobile device, tablet or smartwatch.
  • Operation is voice controlled (as well as via smartphone) and includes personal-assistant-type tasks such as answering the phone.
  • Surveillance cameras (which rotate 360 degrees) that will follow intruders by detecting their presence; there’s no escaping “getting caught on tape.” But if you don’t want Angee to watch you during an intimate moment, no problem; just say “Turn away.” And remember, if the burglar says “Turn away,” Angee will disobey because it won’t recognize his voice.
  • Zero subscription fees.
  • The projected retail price will be $429.

The Birth of Angee

Angee Inc., is a start-up company that formed about a year and a half ago. Its founders had an ultra-strong vision and thus, introduced their system on Kickstarter. The founders needed experts in serial production, so hence teamed up with Dragon Innovation.

Who are the founders?

Tomas Turek is a serial software entrepreneur. He and his team have been working tirelessly for over 18 months to bring Angee to life.

If you’d like to support this futuristic layer of home security to bring it to the present, go to the Kickstarter campaign.

Robert Siciliano, personal and home security specialist to Angee. Learn more about Angee in this Video. Support Angee on Kickstarter. See Disclosures.

Self-Monitored Security System Market heating up

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The Angee home security system is the only one with a video camera that rotates 360 degrees as it detects motion. And this high definition camera has smart zones; you can set up specific zones for monitoring. But Angee is more than just a video surveillance setup. It’s a self-monitored home security system, points out an article on securitygem.com.

ANG1Angee isn’t the first self-monitored home security system that allows the user to view a crime at their home in real-time. However, one feature in particular distinguishes Angee from other similar systems. And that is the versatility of the security tags.

So let’s say the small cylindrical Angee unit is on a cocktail table in your living room, and you have numerous windows throughout the house’s many rooms, and other door entries. Just slap a tag on these other windows and doors. When a tag detects activity it will send an alert to your smartphone (Angee comes with an app for this).

  • The tags will detect motion via two motion sensors including the one that fitness researchers use to measure a person’s daily physical activity: the accelerometer.
  • The motion sensors will also detect open and close movement, such as that from a window.
  • The tags, along with the base unit, will detect movement.
  • You can also activate or deactivate Angee with your voice alone, and if someone else who’s unauthorized speaks the same password, Angee will reject it.

Though one of Angee’s competitors also uses tags, its tags don’t provide the extent of operation that Angee’s does, such as the detection of motion or voice arm/disarm. Angee is also the only such system that can answer your phone.

Unlike one of its competitors, Angee lacks a flood sensor and a few other features like an outdoor smart switch. Angee also does not integrate with other online services yet.

But if you’re primarily interested in home security, the absence of some of these other features won’t be a big deal. Angee makes up for this absence with some cool features like night vision and sound detection (though it’s not the only system that has these features), plus limited free cloud storage.

Robert Siciliano, personal and home security specialist to Angee. Learn more about Angee in this Video. Support Angee on Kickstarter. See Disclosures.

Butthead Burglar buttdials Cops

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You know what a “buttdial” is. This is when a person has a seat somewhere, and the ensuring pressure of their butt against the seat accidentally presses upon the keypad of the phone that’s in their pocket. Or they don’t lock their phone and their fingers indiscriminately just call someone. Happens a lot.

What are the odds that the numbers that are pressed actually dial someone’s number? It’s pretty small, but it’s happened so much that the term “pocket dial” is now official English vernacular.

Here’s a better question: What are the odds that a buttdial dials 9-1-1? Next question: What are the odds that the buttdialer, at the time he butt dials, is talking about committing a burglary, and the 9-1-1 dispatcher overhears this?

Well, it happened.

Usatoday.com reports that a butt dial call came in to Somerset County dispatchers in New Jersey recently, and the inadvertent call allowed them to overhear burglary plans.

Scott Esser, 42, is now in jail on $100,000 bail after butt dialing on July 27. Nobody knows exactly what he did to accidentally place this call. All we know is that it rung 9-1-1, and dispatchers heard men discussing a burglary but were not able to track the location.

However, that evening, a burglary occurred in Branchburg. And by then, the cell phone company had learned that the butt call had been made by a phone assigned to Esser.

So detectives put out surveillance on Esser, following him as he drove to a home. Once he got out, the police lost sight of him. But he returned, and the detectives went to the home—and saw that it had been burglarized. They caught up with the butthead and arrested him.

His car contained jewelry and some pricey electronics, a gun, $11,300 worth of U.S. bonds, and burglary tools. Esser was then charged with burglaries not only in Branchburg, but in Stafford and Berkeley Heights. The butthead was busted.

Robert Siciliano personal and home security specialist to BestHomeSecurityCompanys.com discussing burglar proofing your home on Fox Boston. Disclosures.