Reducing the Chances of Burglary

Reducing the Chances of Burglary

Use Your Alarm System: This is the most prominent and straightforward protection, and alarm systems are installed in most modern homes. Nonetheless, it always amazes me that most of my acquaintances claim to have an alarm system but never use it.

This is entirely illogical. Although everyone has a front door lock and ensures it is locked before leaving the house, many people still need to use their alarm system!

My house has a sophisticated intrusion alarm system installed. Motion detectors, including the garage, are put throughout the house, and fire alarms are located in each room.

I check the windows and doors before leaving, activate the alarm system and secure the door when I return. This takes about a minute of my time, but it could be better spent.

Set the alarm system for the evening.

During the night, a considerable number of intrusions occur. A thief usually breaks in when the homeowners are sleeping upstairs and steals anything he can find downstairs.

Unbeknownst to you, most burglar detectors feature a night mode for two-story homes. This can be set before bed so that all sensors on the first floor remain active while those on the higher floor become inactive.

In the case of a burglary downstairs, the alarm will sound, disrupting the nightly peace. We hope the burglar flees the building before you can even get up.

Every evening before retiring, I perform a cursory inspection of the house, including every door and window. I retire to bed satisfied after setting the alarm.

Most intruders are fearful. They have little inclination to communicate with others and will escape if disturbed. Violence is only used as a last resort.

However, a few burglars (likely an extreme minority) will force their way into your home and overwhelm you after knocking on your front door. Only answer the door if you are sure of its identification.

Installing a peephole allows you to monitor someone before unlocking the door. Although peepholes are incredibly cheap and easy to install, you should consider investing more in a camera and CCTV system.

Alternatively, an upstairs window can interact with the caller securely.

CCTV

Close Circuit Television was excessively expensive until recently; however, the price has rapidly fallen and is now relatively cheap. Furthermore, with the advent of the internet, camera photos can now be transmitted in real-time to a mobile device.

The options for security applications are nearly unlimited. A simple CCTV camera set at the front door and linked to a monitor inside the house is reasonably straightforward.

A more thorough system could incorporate surveillance cameras strategically placed throughout the house and grounds. Instead of listing every conceivable choice here, search for “CCTV security systems” online.

Lighting for the outdoors

Burglars feel more at ease in dimly lit areas where they are less likely to be detected. There are numerous security lighting options available.

Lights that activate exclusively in reaction to motion sensing or that turn on in the dark and remain lighted throughout the night can be installed.

A timer that only turns the light on late at night and off early in the morning is another option.

Modern energy-efficient lighting uses little electricity, yet a small amount of outdoor light is frequently advantageous.

Spare keys should not be stored at the front door.

Burglars may attempt to enter your home using your keys. While this may seem obvious, there have been reports of intruders inserting a fishing rod and a magnet through the door’s letterbox to steal keys from a computer.

It is best to keep the keys somewhere quiet but not too close to the front door.

Strong window locks.

While most modern windows have adequate security latches, further reinforcing older ones may be prudent. Ensure that all windows are secured and closed at night.

An intruder could fracture a pane of glass and then reach inside with their hand to control the window latch. A locked window is an extra barrier, making an attempted intruder’s job more difficult.

Probable fire evacuation measures must be considered if the windows are locked at night.

It is not recommended to encrypt a particular window if it is the only exit in specific scenarios.

Opening the window promptly during a fire is critical to escape the premises.

Avoid erecting a scaffold in your garden.

Intruders typically find it challenging to enter a home through an upstairs window; however, providing them with a ladder will make the task easier.

Keep a ladder out of easy reach in your garden. Ensure that any ladders you own are safely hidden in your garage.

Thorn bushes grow behind a window.

A thorn shrub may be put immediately beneath your window on the wall, depending on the style of your yard. Some briars have extremely sharp, durable spines.

You can prune it as it grows until it is perfectly positioned beneath the window and spans the entire length of the ledge.

Even with sturdy gloves, a thick, mature thorn plant is an almost impossible hurdle. This is only one of countless small steps that have the potential to have a big impact.

Precious items

Even while you should try to secure your home’s exterior, there is more you can do. In the event of a break-in, make it difficult for the invader to find your assets.

The first and most obvious option is to have no possessions. The absence of assets minimises the likelihood of suffering major harm during a burglary.

If you have precious tiny items, keep them hidden. You may squeeze them into an unassuming old cardboard box, but you must be extremely careful not to throw them away during the cleaning!

A safe is an option, but it must be sturdy, heavy, or bolted to the floor to prevent movement.

Using assets as an enticement

An intruder will attempt to enter your home to avoid leaving empty-handed. As a result, furnish your home with stuff that would appear appealing to an invader.

Remember that most trespassers will only steal what they can carry at the time. It is difficult to imagine a burglar arriving with a moving van and shelling out the entire house.

The following are some very noticeable dummies to keep about the house:

Minimal security is safe.

It should include something that rattles quickly. Try filling a cookie jar with a brick. Ensure the safe is robust but not too heavy (30-50 kg).

Confirm that when the cookie tin carrying the brick inside moves, the safe makes a tiny jangling sound. This is almost definitely tempting to a burglar.

On the makeup table, a jewellery case was placed. Make sure you fill it with high-quality, low-cost costume jewellery. Place authentic, secondhand jewellery with no personal significance in the box.

An illustration.

Photograph a valuable image, replicate it, and hang it on the wall. This can be especially handy in an area with a lot of sunlight. Because sunlight is highly damaging to images, hanging a replica rather than the original is far preferable.

Some antiquities.

Burglars enjoy high-quality antiques; nevertheless, prices fluctuate dramatically, making a thief impossible to be specific. Buy antique silver on eBay or a costly, non-working timepiece. Even if a burglar steals these items, your losses will be minimal.

Conduct a security audit.

After considering the aforementioned apparent issues, you should evaluate your items. Put a piece of paper and a pen outside your house. Assume you are an intruder.

You are in financial difficulty and have reason to assume that this house could be a lucrative target for a break-in. You intend to storm in. Consider alternative scenarios in which this could happen. In a notepad, write down the specifics of each item.

Examine each possibility and consider how it could be altered to be less enticing and more demanding.

After finishing the external check, go inside and consider what you would desire if you were a burglar.

Consider what safeguards you could take to make a burglar’s life more difficult.

The information shown above has given you some insight into self-protective techniques. The following are some extra considerations:

You live in a secure neighbourhood with a low crime rate.

Remember that if you are buying a home, it is best to do so in a desirable community rather than an unpleasant one. A home in a desirable neighbourhood will almost certainly cost more to buy, but the extra expense may be warranted.

Make friends with your neighbours.

Always have a friendly relationship with your neighbours. If they know you, they will likely notice anything weird about your property.

Keep detailed records of all valuables.

If you are the victim of a break-in, it is quite improbable that the police would retrieve the stolen property, primarily if you cannot provide solid evidence regarding the stolen items.

It is better to disclose all information to the police than to hide any specifics.

It’s unlikely that you’ll ever be able to recover your stolen items.