Few areas of personal or home security are more controversial than whether or not one should carry or have at home a gun. Each side of the debate has valid points to make and the best answer may take some time to emerge. Statistics can be trotted out for both sides, one side suggesting that [...]

Windows and doors are, obviously, the two most common entry points for burglars. Fortifying them can start with near-zero cost, then grow from there as your needs and budget allows. Before you buy anything, take a good review of your home and your habits. Do you leave keys under the mat near doors? Do you [...]

Many burglaries occur while the homeowners and family are away from the house. It’s often ridiculously easy to spot a house that has been unoccupied for a day or more and is likely to be so longer. Taking a few simple precautions can minimize your chances of being a victim of crime. Many common sense [...]

One of the most obvious common sense observations about homebreakers is their desire to avoid detection. But they want not only to be unobserved while committing the crime, but desire to leave no visible trace of themselves afterward. A video surveillance system can help thwart both their goals. Just seeing that you have a set [...]

According to the FBI, a burglary is committed about every twelve seconds. In order to avoid being a data point in those statistics there are things you can do to secure your home. Just try to think as the professional burglar does. One thing that is safe to say about most professional burglars is: they [...]

Older burglar alarms were fairly elementary. A door or window was opened at the wrong time and an alarm went off, either in the house or at a remote location or both. Installing them required adding wiring and attached devices – an expensive propostion. But security systems have evolved greatly over the past twenty years, [...]

When you design and implement a home security plan, it’s wise to investigate some legal issues that necessarily arise. Laws concerning privacy, gun ownership, security company responses and other issues can become a problem if certain points are not considered up front. The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states (in part): ‘The right of [...]

Modern technology has caught up to home security lighting needs. In times past, a simple, low-cost timer might have been used to turn indoor lights on and off at selected times. Outdoor lights might be on a similar mechanism, but set at different times. Floodlights were common. But state-of-the-art home security lighting is much more [...]

One of the most effective means of protecting your home is to join, or if necessary create, a neighborhood watch program. You can’t be home 24 x 7 x 365. You work, you shop, you take the kids to events, you take vacations. In short, you lead an active life, just like most of your [...]

According to FBI statistics, there’s a violent crime every 18 seconds, on average. Every 29 seconds a violent assault occurs, a forcible rape every five minutes and a murder every 24 minutes. Numbers like those are enough to make a person paranoid. It’s reasonable to take proper precautions, at home and around town or abroad, [...]