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7 Facts About Home Security That’ll Make Your Hair Stand On End

Your home could be a prime target for burglars and you're not aware at all. Here are 7 things you should know to help protect your home from security threats.

Home sweet home—the place that welcomes you like a warm hug. Surely, nothing bad can happen there, right? Wrong. On average, one home is burglarized every 15 seconds in the United States. Just think of how many crimes have been committed since you logged on to your computer. Scary, isn’t it? The best defence against an intruder in your home is to learn to think like one. Knowing how burglars select victims, how they gain access, and what measures you can take to fortify your kingdom will better protect you from becoming a statistic. Your house could be screaming out “come in and rob me blind” and you don’t even know it.

Here are 7 surprising things that you should know about home protection.

1. Burglars are efficient.

Once a burglar decides to break into your home, he will move quickly. It usually takes a mere 60 seconds to break in. The burglary, itself, will take an average of 8 to 12 minutes. Seriously, it is that fast. You quite literally could step out for a loaf of bread and come back to ransacked home.

An entire burglary can take place in a mere ten minutes.

2. Your burglar may look familiar.

When thieves are staking out potential scores, they often pose as legitimate professionals. A burglar may come to your home to solicit your business in some way. Maybe he’ll offer to clean your gutters or trim your hedge—jobs that will give him the chance to check out the territory. He may even feign the need to use your bathroom to get a glimpse of your big screen TV.

Burglars will often come to the door with a clipboard or tie pretending to be a salesperson.

3. Hedges attract burglars.

The foliage around your house may have won you top honors at this year’s horticultural fair, but no one loves it more than your neighborhood burglar does. A tall hedge, bushy shrubs, and other thick plant life provide the perfect hiding place for people wishing to snoop around your home.

They also create the perfect place for an intruder to watch your comings and goings. As soon as you leave your house, the crook can be right there—ready to enter.

Bushes are perfect for hide and seek--and sheltering burglars.

4. Some safes are not safe.

Yes, burglars do not like to “hang around” in your home, so they aren’t likely to take the time to crack a safe. But if you have a portable safe, they’ll just take it with them.

If you are looking to store your goods safely in your home, a built-in or heavy safe is best. Better yet, get a safety deposit box at your local bank.

If you opt for a home safe, you'd better make sure it isn't easily portable.

5. A dog really is your best friend.

Burglars do not like to break into homes that come equipped with a canine. In their eyes, a barking dog equates to a nasty dog bite. Some alarms actually sound like barking dogs because these animals truly do thwart intruders.

Your pooch really can save the day--and your belongings.

6. Burglars love your sock drawers.

The master bedroom is often the first place that burglars will go to in their quest for valuables. Yes, they will ransack your dresser drawers—even the one that houses your socks and skivvies—in hopes of finding a treasure trove. This is not a good place for hiding for anything you cherish.

Interestingly, burglars rarely bother with children’s rooms.

Kids rooms are usually off-limits for burglars.

7. Burglars do monitor social media.

If you announce your vacation to your friends on Facebook, you may return to a burglarized house. Ensure that you kids aren’t keeping the internet world abreast of your comings and goings either.

A seemingly innocent Tweet talking about a night at the movies or checking in at a restaurant through Foursquare also lets burglars know that your home is empty and ripe for the picking. Tell your friends about your amazing meal after the fact—and totally mess up a would-be intruder’s plans.

Intruders love it when you "tweet" your every move.

Never take your home’s security for granted. Keeping your family safe involves more than just installing a deadbolt and a motion-detector. By thinking like a burglar you can make sure that your home stays safe—and that it screams out “don’t bother with this place. It’s a regular Fort Knox.”

How do you protect your home from potential burglars?

Images Courtesy Of:

Image 1
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pasukaru76/4888182395/ via http://photopin.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Image 2
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nebarnix/7685131752/ via http://photopin.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/

Image 4
http://www.flickr.com/photos/edgeplot/63450609/ via http://photopin.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/

Image 5
http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/Finance_g198-Businessman_Trying_To_Close_A_Security_Box_Full_Of_Money_p145227.html

Image 6
http://www.flickr.com/photos/omar_eduardo/84943522/ via http://photopin.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/

Image 7
http://www.flickr.com/photos/champagnechic/2243169221/ via http://photopin.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/

Image 8
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jpott/5597870275/ via http://photopin.comhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/

Updated April 22, 2013

Comments

KimberleyLawsApr 22, 2013

Thank you "knotafraid." I must confess to owning a wee bit of "paranoia," and relieved that I did not communicate that fact.

KimberleyLawsApr 10, 2013

Thanks, Susan! Yes, it is nice to know that there aren't any freaky people hiding behind your bushes. And, yes, it takes a special kind of freaky person to hide behind a snowbank in a cold Canadian winter!

SusanApr 10, 2013

Good stuff. I like the no shrub thing..even coming at home at night. Get rid of that spooky stuff. The odd lights going on and off could be a good idea too...No worries in the winter in Canada with our snowbanks.