Leaving the porch light on...or not?

A reader has asked me to elaborate on the wisdom of leaving the home's porch light on. We've all probably heard good sounding advice both ways, but is there a simple answer? Well lit areas deter loitering and therefore crimes of opportunity.

But doesn't your porch light advertise the fact that you're not home? Yes, this is true as well.

Generally speaking, leaving your car in a well lit area lowers the risks of both vandalism and car theft. Well lit and in a well travelled area reduces your risk for car-jacking and abduction. But just as easily as your porch light, your vehicle parking habits tell a would-be intruder whether you're home also.

If you'd like to come home to a well lit house, there are options!
* Purchase an LED bulb to save power and leave the porch light on constantly.
* Reduce costs more and annoy your neighbors less with motion-sensing floodlights.

If you're more interested in the crime deterrence while away...
* Use home automation (just like the programmable thermostat, you can remotely control your outside lights from a smartphone).
* Put timers on your lights and randomize the schedule.
* Get a house-sitter (nothing mimics activity quite like the good old fashioned way).

Lastly, make use of existing lights. If you're on a street with adequate lighting, don't mess it up by planting shrubs along the house (stalker hiding places). Have clear line-of-sight from where you park the car to the front door.

If you have to worry about someone watching for your vehicle habits, lighting choices become irrelevant.  Invest in a home alarm system to protect your valuables and make sure you have good personal property insurance.

Protect your PRIVATE INFORMATION NOW

If you're one of those that is wondering why your credit cards are always getting stolen, your email is always getting hacked and spammed, you might be doing something wrong. My next few posts will attempt to concentrate the growing concern over "information security" for the average individual.

One of the largest concerns is too immediate to summarize myself, but instead let me show someone else's terrific synopsis from LinkedIn.

Consider an alarm system

Does "Home Security" bring to mind guns or alarm systems?

There are good reasons to combine the two approaches.  But for many, a home-defense weapon might be too much responsibility. In addition, there are situations in which an alarm system can be useful when a firearm is not: fire, carbon monoxide, or medical emergency.  For these reasons, it might be worth looking into an alarm system.

There are many types of alarm systems, monitoring companies, and sensors.  You can even purchase do-it-yourself (diy) kits like this one.

Aside from the cost, your most important decision is whether you want a professionally monitored system or not.  Most people choose a diy kit to avoid that costly, recurring fee.  But a professionally monitored alarm system offers two distinct advantages:

• Security company - or - Emergency Services (Police) response
• Oftentimes a discount on your property insurance (renter's or homeowner's policy)

Both professional and diy setups can offer:

• wireless connectivity (in case hard lines are cut by an intruder or damaged in a storm)
• battery backup for short-term power failures
• control from a smartphone
• notifications to a mobile or work phone when an alarm is triggered
• audible alarm to alert neighbors and/or scare-off trespassers

If you are concerned about burglary, you should require at a minimum: door sensors, window sensors, notification ability, and some type of 'panic button' for the monitored accounts.  Common additional sensors offer enhanced protection or additional features such as cameras, motion detectors (outdoor and indoor), noise (glass-breaking for example), temperature (climate), and zoning (or segmenting the area to be alarmed).

Before you start shopping for any type of alarm system, you need to ask yourself a few questions.  Just like buying a car, you don't want to be swayed by hard-sale tactics or gimmicks.

What do I want this alarm to do for me?

Basically, why do you want one...but think specific function or lifestyle need.  Does the alarm need to protect your home because you travel a lot?  Do you want it to feel more safe while you're at home?  Draft a list of your pressing concerns and describe how you think an alarm will alleviate those concerns.  Just by doing this step, your decision is like 80% made for you.

What can I afford to spend? / Can I upgrade later?

Can you get a starter kit and expand into something more comprehensive later?  With a diy kit, this means a programmable keypad to accept additional sensors.  With a monitored system, many of which have minimum contracts varying from 1 to 3 years, can you add features later or cancel early (in the first 30 days if you're not satisfied maybe)?  How much is installation and monthly monitoring fee?  Do they offer discounts?  Ask your insurance agent to recommend a company or system.

Also related to this is warranty.  Who pays for repairs or defective parts?  Is a warranty offered, or do you get free component replacement during your monitoring contract?

Lastly, check references or online reputation.

Research the company's profile with the Better Business Bureau.  Read product reviews on sale websites.  And ask for recommendations from friends, coworkers, and even the police (off the record of course).

Minimizing Bank Account Fraud

Keeping your finances secure is no easy task.

Even major corporations are hit hard by scam artists and thieves (such as Target).  While nothing apart from cash-only transactions can safeguard your accounts with certainty, there are still some ways to keep your bank data safe.

My suggestions below would not have protected someone from the aforementioned Target scam, but may help reduce your risk from many of the most common attacks.

Online banking

Online banking exposes people to a lot of assumed risk.  The convenience of the practice doesn't mean that we should forego sensible precautions:

     1) Don't use public or untrusted computers

Computers that aren't under your control can be infected with 'spyware' that can either keep track of all of your keystrokes and grab your usernames and passwords (i.e. keylogging). Or, a public computer might be connected to a network that allows a third-party to view all incoming and outgoing traffic (such as a man-in-the-middle attack).  This latter issue is becoming an increasing problem for unsecure WiFi networks at public places such as cafes and airports.  A malicious use of this form of eavesdropping allows the person in the middle to capture bank statements, account numbers, etc.  Even on your home computer, are your virus and malware protections current?

     2) Use Credit cards instead of debit cards (if you use a card at all)

Credit card backers often use state-of-the-art fraud departments that look for unusual purchasing patterns (out-of-country?) and call the card owner for verification.  In any case, credit cards have a maximum balance and sometimes have a maximum transaction limit - both of which protect you!  As a responsible consumer, you should be checking your statements and promptly reporting fraudulent activity (there is an 800 number on the back of your card to do this).  Promptly reporting suspect transactions reduces and sometimes eliminates the consumer's liability for the fraudulent purchases.

The problem with debit cards is that they usually don't have these protections.  It can be very difficult to credit (refund) your account and fraud affects your cash balance immediately.

     3) Use banks or online merchants that allow for continually changing passwords

Some websites allow you to have passwords that are a customized base + randomized pin = unique password (mostly).  One vendor that I am the most familiar with is VeriSign's VIP credential system.

     4) Be EXTREMELY wary of overdraft protection

Overdraft protection is often convenient in that your debit card or checking account isn't overdrawn, critical payments get through, and you avoid overdraft or "Non Sufficient Funds" fees.  However, I'd rather have my checking account declined than have automatic overdraft protection that allows my savings account to be wiped out.

What is the door chain good for?

Short answer: not much.

The door chain is a poor substitute for the peephole, intercom, or CCTV. It is also unlikely to deter any trained burglar.  Door chains are frequently included with short screws - and a swift kick from a neighborhood teenager should be sufficient. Even using sturdier screws will normally not be successful.  The door has to be properly constructed to handle mounting hardware. In addition, doors are usually surrounded by trim pieces on the frame - and those will just tear off.

Door chains do make an affordable child deterrent.  So long as the chain isn't mounted sturdy enough to become a fire hazard (check your local regulations), it can be mounted high enough on your door so that young children must make substantially more effort to escape. Enough effort, one would hope, that the noise would attract adult notice.

Initial interest in security.

On my Facebook page dedicated to security, I ask some initial questions to get a sense of how seriously people are considering home security: whether they feel safe and what measures they may be taking to achieve that sense of safety.

Click here to take that survey.

This blog page will be receiving the majority of my effort as I think it's a superior platform from which to provide advice and tips, as well as link to primary source material. As much as possible, I'll copy links of my articles to the FB page HERE.

Thanks for visiting!