8 HOME SECURITY MISTAKES YOU’RE MAKING -...

8 HOME SECURITY

MISTAKES YOU’RE MAKING

01 INTRODUCTION

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction

1. Hiding keys by doorways

2. Leaving out mail

3. Open windows

4. Leaving valuables in-sight

5. No visible security

6. Not maintaining your yard

7. Updating social media

8. A lifeless home

Conclusion

About Cammy

Resources

HOME SECURITY MISTAKES THAT ARE COSTLY, BUT EASILY AVOIDABLE...

Has anyone ever stolen something from you? It could be anything, from

anywhere. Ask this question to a group of people and sadly almost

everyone will raise their hand.

Theft is a part of life and while it can be unavoidable, often it’s due

to simple mistakes we make; whether that’s leaving your phone on a

park bench, not locking your car door or falling asleep on a train. In

these situations we make it easy for a crime to happen. Most theft is

opportunistic, and we all too often give the thief the opportunity.

02 INTRODUCTION

03 INTRODUCTION

Having your home burgled is no different.

Every day we make mistakes that leave our homes vulnerable to a break-

in. We know that a burglar will always choose the easiest target and

that’s good news for you - it means you get to have a lot of influence on

whether you become a victim or not.

At Cammy we have a lot of customers that join us after they have been

burgled, and we’re always curious to know what circumstances led to their

home being targeted. Using these insights and doing our research we

have detailed the eight most common Home Security mistakes.

What you will find is that these mistakes are easily avoidable. My hope is

that after reading this ebook, you take action. The safety and security of

you and your family makes even the smallest action, worth it.

A BIT ABOUT ME

Hi my name is Jason, I’m the Digital Marketing Manager for Cammy, and

one of the things that inspired me to write this ebook was to help others

avoid being burgled. In addition to regularly dealing with people who call

us for help AFTER a break-in, I’ve also been broken into twice over the

last eight years and just recently I even stopped a neighbour’s home from

being burgled, so I know what puts a home at risk.

These days my home is well protected, and by avoiding some common

mistakes the same can be true for your home.

With that said, let’s get started…

04 INTRODUCTION

HIDING KEYS BY DOORWAYS

You have a friend who needs to access your home when you’re not

there, so you leave a key outside somewhere near the doorway. Seems

logical but it’s extremely risky.

Burglars are often not the smartest individuals but they are smart

enough to know that a lot of people hide keys near doorways.

By doing this you’re not only giving someone easy access to your

property but you risk someone duplicating your key and having access

to your home whenever they want.

05 CHAPTER 1

Smartphone app makes it easy for burglars to duplicate keys

“”

06 CHAPTER 1

1. MANAGE HOUSE GUESTS

Whether you’re an Airbnb host, or you have a friend visiting you from out

of town, try to avoid leaving a key out. Just like a hotel, your home needs

specific check-in times so you can be there to let someone in. Even if you

can’t do this, remember, replacing stolen items and having your home

trashed is a much greater inconvenience than having to go home to let

someone in.

So what should you do if you need to let people in when you’re

not there? Here are a few suggestions:

07 CHAPTER 1

2. CONSIDER KEYLESS LOCKS

With the rise of smart home technology comes keyless locks that allow

you to unlock a door remotely. Do your research as this technology is still

quite new, and choose a lock that includes a key as a backup such as

Kevo.

3. AVOID GIMMICKY KEY HOLDERS

We all know about the rock in the garden that looks like a rock but is really

a key holder. The problem is not so much that gimmicky key holders look

fake (although most do), the bigger problem is they all look the same, so

burglars know what to look for.

4. GET CREATIVE

If you really must leave a key out, don’t leave it anywhere near a door. For

example, consider hiding your key somewhere in the backyard. I have a

friend who used to leave their key out a couple of streets away from where

they live in a public spot where no one could see them place it.

08 CHAPTER 2

LEAVING OUT PARCELS AND MAIL

We already know that burglars look for signs you’re not home, and an

overflowing mailbox is a dead give away. So too are parcels left on the

doorstep for longer than 24hrs.

The other problem with an overflowing mailbox is that criminals can

steal your mail and access your personal information.

So what do you do if you’re going away?

09 CHAPTER 2

1. DON’T ACCEPT JUNK MAIL

If you’re going away for an extended time, you’ll receive enough standard

mail to fill your mailbox without having a load of junk mail stuffed in there

too. Try displaying a “No Junk Mail” sticker on your mailbox.

2. ASK FOR HELP

Ask a friend, family member or even a trusted neighbour if they can collect

your mail while you’re away.

3. USE AUSTRALIA POST ‘HOLD MAIL’

If you can’t find someone to collect your mail when you’re away then

Australia Post offers a paid service called ‘Hold Mail’ that will hold your

mail and only deliver it when you return.

4. WATCH YOUR BAGS

If you’re leaving on a holiday, try to minimise the time you’re bags are left

visible on your doorstep or the street curb. Advertising to passers-by that

you’re going away is an easy mistake to make. You never know who may

be watching you.

10 CHAPTER 3

AN OPEN WINDOW IS AN INVITATION

When someone wants to break into your home they are looking for

the easiest and quickest route to get inside. Research shows that

often windows are an easier entry point than sturdy doors with strong

locks. Windows can also be easier to exit the home as a door can be

deadlocked.

With this mind, let’s look at a few things you can do:

11 CHAPTER 3

CHOOSE THE RIGHT WINDOWS

Single and double hung windows are better choices than glass louvre

windows. If you can’t choose your windows then consider having them

fitted with keyed window locks.

The team at realestate.com.au give a good summary of the different

window options available.

LOCK YOUR WINDOWS

Sounds like common sense but it’s not always. For example, I have a friend

who was in their backyard gardening one day while someone entered

through the front of the house and stole their laptop. Thieves can be very

brazen, so don’t assume that just because you’re home, someone won’t

try to break in.

In a 2014 report by the Australian Institute of Criminology, 46.2% of burglars said they would enter a home while a homeowner was inside, if they thought they could get away undetected.

“

”

12 CHAPTER 3

13 CHAPTER 3

INSTALL GRILLS ON FRONT WINDOWS

If you live in a high crime area then consider having grills on your

front windows. I live in the inner west of Sydney where crime is higher.

Surprisingly some of my neighbours don’t have grills on their front

windows. You can bet that a burglar is going to choose their houses over

mine.

CLOSE SECOND FLOOR WINDOWS

t’s a smart move to close second floor windows too, especially if they are

visible from the street or back laneway. If you walk outside your house you

can see what windows might be visible from the street. If a burglar can see

that the window is closed they will assume it’s locked.

It only takes a few minutes for a burglar to strike, for your safety to be

compromised and for you to lose something valuable. Don’t let this be

because you simply didn’t close and lock a window.

LEAVING VALUABLES IN SIGHT

You wouldn’t leave your phone on the dashboard of your car, that would

be crazy right!? Yet, too many of us leave things like laptops, phones,

jewellery and cash lying around our home, easily visible to brazen

criminals.

But it’s your home, surely you can leave valuables wherever you want?

Well, according to the latest crime statistics, apparently not.

This was (another) lesson that I learned the hard way. A few years ago

I was relaxing on my couch watching TV when a young male burglar

suddenly appeared at my living room window.

14 CHAPTER 4

15 CHAPTER 4

Luckily I avoided being burgled that day. But imagine if I was in another

room and my laptop was sitting on the coffee table, what do you think

would have happened? Well, I have no doubt that i would have been

shopping around for a new laptop that afternoon.

So these days I make sure that I store away valuables at home and I

recommend you do the same.

DON’T FORGET YOUR TRASH

If you purchase an expensive item such as a new TV, computer, or sound

system, don’t leave the packaging lying around outside. Break the

packaging down to fit in your bin or wait until bin day before you put your

trash out.

An expensive item signals you have money and other expensive items. It’s

a clear indicator to a burglar that your home is worth targeting.

NO VISIBLE SECURITY

Does having home security really help prevent burglaries? The answer

is yes, especially if the security is visible; just ask former juvenile burglar

Charlie London.

“If I saw a sticker for a home security system, that would have been

enough of a deterrent” recalls London. Read more from this interview

with a burglar.

Here in Australia, a study surveying Western Australian police detainees

found that a lack of security is the biggest reason for targeting a

premises. A total of 168 detainees were asked about their knowledge of

common burglary tactics, see the table below:

16 CHAPTER 5

17 CHAPTER 5

18 CHAPTER 5

Fortunately securing your home doesn’t need to break the bank. There

are a number of things you can do to make your home appear secure and

ward off burglars:

GET A DOG

Burglars don’t like attention so a dog barking is a huge deterrent. In saying

that however, not all dogs make great guard dogs and some dogs can be

easily tamed by a burglar. Sadly, there’s also the risk of a desperate burglar

hurting your beloved pet. Or unfortunately these days, there is even a risk

of the resident being sued by the criminal if your pet happens to hurt an

intruder in the process of protecting the property. This can result in an

expensive legal battle too.

19 CHAPTER 5

INSTALL SENSOR LIGHTS

Sensor lights can spook a burglar and draw attention to their activities.

Keep in mind though, most burglars can tell the difference between a

sensor light and someone turning on a light. Still, it’s better to have a

sensor-light particularly if you want make it appear that someone is home

at night. They are also an effective way of bringing unwanted attention to

their presence around your home too.

SECURE WINDOWS

As we discussed in Chapter One, windows are a vulnerable entry point

to your home. According to realestate.com.au just over half of all forced

entries are through a window. You can deter a burglar with windows that

lock and/or grills that prevent someone entering even if they break the

glass.

20 CHAPTER 5

INSTALL AN ALARM

Alarms don’t always prevent a break-in but they do scare away intruders

once they are triggered . The problem with alarms is people forget to turn

them on, they produce a lot of false-alarms and if you’re not home you

have no way of knowing what set them off.

CCTV

CCTV systems can be something to consider however they are expensive

to install and require you to scroll through loads of footage to find what

you’re looking for. There also fixed, so you can’t take

21 CHAPTER 5

DIY WI-FI SECURITY CAMERAS

Imagine you’re a burglar and you see two houses, one with a security

camera and one without. Which home are you more likely to target?

Security cameras are a great solution because a burglar knows they are

being watched and the footage can be used to find and convict them of a

crime. That’s a huge deterrent.

If you have internet at home and a smartphone, you can use our service

Cammy to set up Wi-Fi cameras and monitor these cameras remotely.

You’ll get alerts when an intruder is detected. And it’s surprisingly

affordable as there is no need for expensive installation and hardware.

22 CHAPTER 6

NOT MAINTAINING YOUR YARD

Consider a building with a few broken windows. If the windows are not

repaired, the tendency is for vandals to break a few more windows.

Eventually, they may even break into the building, and if it’s unoccupied,

perhaps become squatters or light fires inside.

This concept is known as the ‘broken windows theory’ and implies

that maintaining order and lawfulness helps prevent serious crime

offences. It’s all in the psychology.

This is why maintaining your yard is so critical too, especially when you

consider that most burglaries are spur of the moment. A messy yard is

a signal to a burglar that you’re an easy target.

23 CHAPTER 6

TRIM BUSHES AND TREES

Burglars like to hide behind trees, gardens, high walls and fences when

they are breaking in. Ideally you want a balance between privacy and

potential hiding places.

DON’T LEAVE TOOLS LYING AROUND

Don’t tempt a burglar by leaving tools lying around your yard. A shovel can

be used to smash a window and a pitchfork can be turned into a weapon.

And a ladder is almost an invitation to a burglar to climb up into an open

window.

24 CHAPTER 6

BRING THE BINS IN

Leaving the bins out on the street curb for days indicates you’re away or

that you work long hours and are not home much. If bins are left against

a wall or gate, they can also be used by a burglar as a step ladder to get

into your yard or window.

FIX BROKEN ENTRY POINTS

A big reason why I was burgled a few years ago was that my back fence

was broken. The fence backed onto a laneway which attracted all sorts of

characters at night. The fence was closed but it wasn’t secure and that

was enough for anyone curious enough to investigate my backyard.

UPDATING SOCIAL MEDIA

Using social media to tell everyone that you’re away on holidays is a

common mistake people make. If I was a burglar I would ‘favourite’ the

tweet below.

25 CHAPTER 7

26 CHAPTER 7

If you think burglars using social media to target homes is a bit far fetched

then you need to consider that 78 percent of burglars in a British poll

said they’ve used Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare and other social media

platforms to find likely properties to target.

From the tweet above I was able to find this person’s LinkedIn profile and

that took 30 seconds. Imagine what I could find with a little more time.

Scary huh.

27 CHAPTER 7

Earlier this year, former world champion boxer Ricky Hatton tweeted this:

The result was £28,000 worth of watches stolen from his home the next

day. So avoid using social media to let strangers know your whereabouts.

You never know who is following you online.

28 CHAPTER 8

A LIFELESS HOME

Do you remember that movie scene in Home Alone where Kevin

McCallister deters the burglars from breaking in by making it look like

there was a party going on inside his house?

For obvious reasons, burglars prefer to target homes that are

unoccupied, so anything you can do to make it look like you’re at home

is a good thing.

I’m not saying you need to put mannequins in your window but there

are some things you can do easily and they are effective too.

We have already looked at the mistake of leaving out parcels and mail,

and the importance of bringing your rubbish bins in but here are a few

more tips to follow.

29 CHAPTER 8

LEAVE A LIGHT ON

If you go out for the evening try leaving a light on inside. A burglar will be

none the wiser and will prefer to target a home that is blacked out instead.

However try not to leave a light or the TV on all night as it can signal to a

burglar that nobody is home. Try putting them on a timer.

LEAVE A CAR OUT

A car in the driveway can signal to a burglar that someone is home.

MOW YOUR LAWN

If you’re going away on holidays, mow your lawn just before you leave.

Long grass is a sign that you’re on vacation.

30 CHAPTER 8

PAUSE ANY DELIVERIES

In the haste of leaving for holidays it’s easy to forget to pause things like

your newspaper and/or milk delivery services.

HOWEVER...

Even if you do your best to make it look like someone is home, there are

cases where a burglar will double-check by knocking on your door. In this

case there is not a lot you can do.

At least with a solution like Cammy, you’ll get notified if someone

approaches your front door when you’re not home, so it’s worth checking

out.

31 CONCLUSION

CONCLUSION

Thanks for taking the time to read this ebook. I hope this has helped

you identify some mistakes you might be making with your home’s

security and given you some useful tactics you can implement straight

away!

While this content is fresh in your mind, one exercise that I encourage

you to do is this:

Walk out onto the street you live in and look around at each property.

Put yourself in the shoes of a burglar and ask yourself which property

you would target and why?

32 CONCLUSION

Doing this simple exercise will help you better understand the mistakes

covered in this book and how you can better protect your home.

If you want to learn more about our home security product and how you

can monitor your home from anywhere, anytime, visit our website www.

cammy.com.

If you enjoyed this ebook and have friends that might also benefit, please

share it with them!

FACEBOOK | TWITTER

33 ABOUT CAMMY

ABOUT CAMMY

Our mission is to provide you with peace of mind. We do this by making

it easy for you to watch over your home, family, pets and possessions

from anywhere, anytime.

Using easy to set-up yourself Wi-Fi cameras that you can view from

your phone, Cammy is perfect for every situation:

• Homeowners use it to get alerts if there is an intruder

• Parents use it to keep an eye on the kids

• Pet owners use it to see what their pets get up to

• Holidaymakers use it to check on their home when they’re away

• Businesses use it to watch over staff and stock

• Hobbyists use it to monitor their art collection, vintage cars and other

possessions

Want to learn more? Visit us at www.cammy.com

34 RESOURCES

RESOURCES

http://www.aic.gov.au/publications/current%20series/tandi/481-500/tandi489.html http://www.police.tas.gov.au/services-online/pamphlets-publications/residential-burglary-prevention/

http://goodneighbors.com/post/95295273792/burglar

http://www.realestate.com.au/blog/windows-homes-weak-spot/?_t=555314999&_r=NH_editorial

http://www.realestate.com.au/