Whether you have a family or a business, having and maintaining a sense of security is essential for your happiness and peace of mind. Our homes are filled with the people and things that are most precious to us, while our businesses provide us with the means to take care of our family. This is why it is important to take security seriously.
According to the FBI annual crime report, in 2014, there were around 1.7 million burglaries in the United States. To put this in perspective, for every 100,000 people in the United States, there were almost 550 burglaries.
The odds speak for themselves. Too many Americans will know the unsettling feeling of having their privacy invaded, not to mention the pain and aggravation of property destruction.
Thankfully, there are ways that you can prepare yourself to stay ahead of would-be thieves. In recent years technology has advanced, seeing the development of enhanced security systems that run continuously and function with a fully equipped emergency-contact arsenal. As this technology develops and becomes more accessible, a larger number of options are readily available for both residential and commercial use.
The technology is there, but it is up to you to employ it correctly and effectively. Even a cutting edge high tech system can’t stop an intruder if there are weak points in your home or business security. Alarms may sound, but weak locks and blind spots can still give a burglar the access they need to steal your valuables and damage your property. It’s important to ask yourself — are there weak spots in your home, office or small business?
With this question in mind, we’ve developed a guide for home and business owners looking to strengthen their security. By addressing common home break-in points and potential weak spots in your business security, you can drastically reduce your vulnerability to burglary. In so doing, you can sleep soundly at night, confident in the safety of your loved ones and valuable assets.
How Burglars Break into Residential Homes
There are paths of least resistance burglars use to access most homes. As we explain these common intruder entry points, consider your own home and if it might have similar vulnerabilities. But don’t worry — for each description of the weak spots in your home security we will also discuss available security solutions.
The Garage Door:
While garage doors are convenient when you’re bringing in the groceries, they also pose a serious security risk if they are not properly secured.
If you have a hand-lifted garage door, know that the locks used to secure these doors are typically outdated, making them simpler to break. Furthermore, these doors are weighted – making them easier to lift. This can make them an easy access point for would-be intruders.
Newer automatic doors can be vulnerable, too. Many are installed with an outdoor keypad designed to give owners entry without the need for a car garage door opener. While security-minded homeowners are careful to program the keypad with an obscure entry code, many will opt for a simple, easy to guess number — sometimes even leaving the factory preset code.
Many new garage doors also come with windows. While these might be aesthetically pleasing, they also give potential burglars clues as to your whereabouts. By peering into your garage door windows, intruders can tell if your car is gone — a good indicator that the home is vacant.
How, then, should you reduce your garage door vulnerability? You want to make sure you have a new garage door installed. As garage door installation companies become more aware of potential security risks, they design their doors with security in mind. Selecting a carefully constructed door — one without windows or easy access points — is key.
Make sure you always change the factory setting on your outdoor keypad, being careful to avoid personal numbers such as birthdays or anniversaries. While these may be easier for you to remember, sophisticated burglars often do research before attempting to break in.
If you lock your car in the garage, do not leave your keys in the car. Not only does this make your car vulnerable for theft, but car keys usually have a house key on the same ring, giving intruders easy access to the rest of your home.
And if you do have a garage door containing windows, make sure to frost them in order to obscure a snooper’s view into your home. Finally, always lock the door that connects your garage to the rest of your house. That way, if a burglar does manage to infiltrate your garage, you have another line of defense before your loved ones.
Sliding Glass Doors:
Sliding glass doors are gorgeous – they let natural light into your house while giving you easy access to the fresh air outside. Unfortunately, they also give intruders easy access.
While many new sliding glass doors come with strong, sophisticated locks, breaking through the glass and unlocking the door from the inside is easy, especially if the burglar knows that you are not home.
Fortunately, there are ways you can make that sliding glass door more secure.
You might want to consider installing a keyed dead latch on the door. While traditional deadbolts require a key to enter from the outside, they typically do not have one on the inside. But keyed dead latches require keys on both sides of the lock. While this might be slightly more hassle for you when want to let in the spring air, it will ensure that breaking the glass pane won’t make unlocking the door any easier.
Another security is to purchase a glass door with multiple glass panes. If an intruder is determined, they can break through a single paned door and simply walk in. But multiple panes make this entry method far more difficult.
Finally, make sure your sliding glass door is integrated into a home security system that includes automated law enforcement alerts. That way, if an intruder does make it inside, they will be greeted by the police as they try to make their escape.
Pet Doors:
For animal lovers, pet doors are convenient. If your dog or cat wants to go outside to do their business, you don’t need to be an escort. But these doors also create security vulnerabilities. Many people feel that if their doggie door is small this prevents an adult human from entering through it. And while a human might not be able to get their whole body through the doggie door, they can certainly reach through and unlock the door or use a tool to do the same.
The easiest way to eliminate this vulnerability is to eliminate the door altogether. However, if you feel you need to retain a dog door, consider these methods of reducing their security risk.
A locking dog door is the first line of defense. While you may choose to leave the door unlocked during the day — allowing your pet to move in and out uninhibited — you want to make sure to lock the door at night and when you are away from the home.
Second, if you are installing a new dog door, consider putting it in an exterior wall as opposed to your entrance way. A small dog door in the middle of the wall eliminates the threat of an intruder using it as a way to unlock a door.
Finally, consider installing extra motion sensors around your dog door. If it’s a particular worry you can even add video surveillance to make sure your pets are the only ones sniffing around.
The Hidden Key:
A hidden key seems to provide a number of convenient services. If you accidentally lock yourself out, you can get back in with ease. You may potentially have cleaners or caretakers that need access to your home, and a hidden key provides a simple way to do this. But hiding a key under your doormat, in a flower pot or even in the meter box is never a good idea.
Burglars — especially those with experience — check these typical hiding places first. They even know how to spot those trick rocks designed to camouflage your hiding spots.
Leaving keys outside is a dangerous practice. Luckily, there are a number of ways you can avoid it.
First, take care when hiring professionals who need access to your home. Experienced, advocated cleaners and care takers will ask for a key, knowing they can be trusted with it. If you are hiring someone who asks that a key be left outside, you may want to consider hiring someone else.
Second, there are also new technologies designed with the forgetful homeowner in mind. Home automation systems allow you to lock and unlock your with your smart phone. This is also helpful if you are going on vacation and you suddenly find yourself worrying about whether your locked your home properly before leaving.
No Monitored Security System:
When people buy new homes, they often buy homes with security systems already installed. However, activating the monitoring services on these security systems requires a subscription. Many owners opt out of the subscription and simply activate their alarms at night, taking comfort in the security sticker on their door and the knowledge that if a burglar tries to enter, a loud alarm will sound.
While it is true that some burglars may be deterred by the security sticker on your door or the sound of an alarm, scared or startled criminals are often unpredictable. For every burglar who simply runs away, another will become increasingly dangerous as their adrenaline begins to rush.
So make sure that your home intruder system is connected to a response service. These services can also provide you with instant alerts on your phone, so you can remain connected to your home even if you are away on vacation or business.
If you follow these guidelines regarding residential security systems, we are confident that you will experience increased peace of mind. And that’s important. You have spent years of effort making your home your little palace in the world, a retreat from the rigors of work. So you should feel confident and safe while you are there, and free of worry when you aren’t.
How Burglars Break into Businesses
For small business owners, commercial real estate can be just as valuable as a home. They have invested years of hard work into building a thriving business. Unfortunately, all it can take is one break in to make much of that work come crashing down.
But business owners also have to contend with thieves that infiltrate from within. While outside intruders may try to steal valuables — including cash drawers and merchandise —sometimes employees themselves may try to use their level of access and familiarity to take advantages.
Every business has unique vulnerabilities and needs. It’s important to explore the various types of business-specific security solutions out there, since it is up to business owners to protect themselves. With that in mind, here are some of the most common weak points in business security that burglars exploit, along with solutions for making them more secure.
Insufficient Door Security:
Many small businesses rely on simple door locks out of a false sense of security that small businesses are not large targets of burglary. But this can be a dangerous approach. While small businesses can use a simple lock on the door for years without an intruder, all it takes is one incident of theft to put your business in a tough position.
Keep in mind that as opposed to home intrusions — where burglars may be wary of vacancy in a home at night — the majority of small businesses close during the evening hours, making thieves more confident in the vulnerability of the building. They can be sure they won’t be approached by anyone while they are canvassing or manipulating a storefront. This is why you need to make sure that your door can withstand a long period of uninterrupted tampering and lock-picking from a sophisticated burglar.
Retail-grade intrusion alarms will ensure that anyone attempting to tamper with your door will quickly arouse the attention of the authorities. Depending on the value of your merchandise, doors can also be equipped with photoelectric beams that will make the proper channels aware of any movement within your store or place of business. Considering the levels of investment, as well as the worth and allure of your commodities, you want to make sure that you install a security system tailor-made for your specific needs.
Low-Quality Safes:
Just like doors, low quality safes are poor deterrents for experienced intruders. If you are keeping the day’s receipts in a simple lock box, a burglar can take the box and easily open it once they are safely off property.
Depository safes, while harder to move, can be unlocked by a burglar familiar with the technology. Even if a burglar is unfamiliar with the specific technology, if they possess the necessary prying equipment they can open a safe with sheer force. This process may be time-consuming, but it is made easier for a burglar if your security system is outdated.
So you want to make sure that your safe is rated for a high level of resistance. It is also prudent to install the latest in locking technology on your safe. Simple wheel combination locks can be easily picked. Instead — depending on the value of the safe’s contents — consider a more sophisticated touch-pad or even a fingerprint locking mechanism.
Poor Data Security:
Even if the security on your physical building is top-notch, keep in mind that data security is important, too. If your business collects sensitive client materials like personal information or credit card numbers, you should be aware of how valuable these are to cyber thieves. You risk losing not only the data but the trust of your customers — and trust is a very hard thing to win back.
Also — depending on the scope of your business — a sophisticated thief may use a data breach as a means of uncovering physical security vulnerabilities
It is important to make sure you are investing as much energy in data security as you are in physical security.
Poor Internal Security:
Sadly, sometimes the criminal is an employee. While you work hard to make sure that you hire trustworthy individuals, occasionally even the most cautious companies can be fooled.
One way to prevent accidentally making yourself vulnerable to a dishonest employ is to create distinct security zones within your business or facility. If an employee doesn’t need access to certain sensitive information or cash stores, keeping them in a separate area with limited access is practical.
One benefit of these access control systems is that they provide valuable monitoring solutions that help in ways beyond simple security. You have access to employee information — such as when they are arriving and leaving — as well as lockdown controls in the case of an emergency.
Insufficient Monitoring:
In the event that something is stolen from your place of business, you want to make sure that you have collected the information law enforcement needs to find the perpetrator. If the monitoring systems in your business are outdated or insufficient, it is likely a thief will remain unidentified — getting away with the crime.
This is especially pertinent if you find yourself the victim of employee theft. Without monitoring systems, it becomes much easier for a dishonest employee to pocket money from the drawer or leave with merchandise. You may discover the discrepancy when you balance the drawer or inventory later, but at that point, it can be difficult to identify the culprit.
Thankfully, monitoring systems can be easily and unobtrusively installed, helping you maintain your level of security — during business and closing hours.
No Legal Protection:
Unfortunately, dishonest people have extremely varied ways to exploit businesses. While thieves may break in, disgruntled employees and customers can use frivolous lawsuits as a means of extortion — forcing you to settle on an undeserved payout or winning a suit in court.
And while security systems may seem irrelevant on this point, video surveillance is a valuable tool for gathering evidence in a defense against litigation. Without sufficient video evidence, a day in court may culminate as your word against theirs. However, if as part of your security system you have proof of your lack of negligence, you can defend yourself in front of the judge.
Why You Should Work With an Experienced Security Company
As we’ve seen, there are myriad ways burglars can take advantage of the weaknesses in your home and business security systems. This is why, when it comes to addressing and preparing for these potential situations, experience matters.
We at Lloyd Security have seen it all. We know the most common vulnerabilities and are proficient at designing security solutions that tailor to the needs of any home or business
Whether you want to protect your place of relaxation or your place of commerce, we offer measures to meet your needs — monitored security systems, advanced motion detectors, motion-activated flood lighting, smartphone integration, security automation and even fire systems constructed with home and business security in mind. Our knowledgeable and friendly staff is waiting to learn about you and your needs. You work hard. You take care of your family. And you deserve peace of mind.