Avoid sharing holiday plans online
Residents are urged to be vigilant as the Easter holidays approach.
WITH the Easter holidays approaching, residents are urged to be extra cautious as the holiday season is a prime time for burglars to strike. Homeowners are encouraged to avoid broadcasting information about their holiday plans and itineraries on social media sites.
Safety tips:
You don’t have complete control over who views your posts on social media sites and it can be dangerous to share your family’s plans, such as the location and duration of your holiday on social networking sites. Sharing your plans online can be dangerous as you are potentially telling criminals that you are not going to be home.
Ensure the exterior and interior of homes are lit at night. Burglars love to operate under the shadow of darkness. A dark house with no movement during the day and no lights switched on at night is a clear indication to criminals that your home is unoccupied and an easy target. You can solve this by investing in an affordable timer from a hardware store and set the lights to turn on and off at certain times in rooms your family usually occupies at night. You can also consider investing in a timer to turn on the television or the radio at set times to further create the illusion that there is someone at home.
Ask a trusted friend or neighbour to pick up the post and any newspaper deliveries. An overflowing postbox and a driveway strewn with newspaper deliveries alert criminals to the fact that your home is unoccupied.
Test your alarm systems before going on holiday. Don’t leave the test until the last minute in case there is a problem that needs to be fixed.
Upgrading a home security system to include CCTV surveillance camera with remote access monitoring provides additional peace of mind during the holidays. With remote access monitoring you can check in on your home using your tablet or laptop from wherever you are.
House-sitters and domestic staff should also be briefed on how to correctly switch on the alarm system and cautioned about the importance of not allowing access to meter readers or repairmen without checking for identification. Armed robbers wearing blue overalls sometimes pose as water and electricity meter readers and repairmen to gain access onto a property before holding up home owners.
Courtesy of Blue Security
