Category Archives: Property Security

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A while back I mentioned that you need to keep certain items on-hand in case certain systems (ex. Banking) become unavailable.  Having cash and coin will allow prepared people to make purchases when the cards and online payments are unavailable.  But where to keep it?

HPC Wall Safe

I decided to purchase an HPC wall safe to store valuables.  I keep cash, transit cards, credit cards, and other valuables in it both for security and availability.  Having a wall safe makes it more secure because it is mounted to the frame of my house.  Its also small enough to be installed in a difficult to find place where it can remain hidden from view.

My important documents are stored in my safe deposit box because I don’t need them immediately.  However, I do plan on scanning and saving them on an encrypted, secure USB memory device that I can keep on-site.  My wall safe is designed to contain only certain high-value items, the rest are stored in other places.

As with most important items, I recommend spending the extra money to get a high-quality safe.  My preference is on American-made products, which I was able to realize this this particular unit.  Instead of looking for an inexpensive, consumer-grade safe at your local big box store, go for the commercial-level that is sold through industrial supply companies.  The extra money you spend will be worth it and be a small price to pay compared to the robust security that a quality wall safe offers.  Give it some thought and see if this makes sense for your house.

Click here to order an HPC WS-100 Wall Safe, Key Lock

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Despite what some people say, appearances matter.  When it comes to hardening your home, looks say a lot about whether a house is occupied or not.

Credit: WAVY TV

In this picture, one house appears unkempt while the one next door appears well-maintained.  If a thief was scouting the area, he would conclude that the house with the un-mowed grass was unoccupied, meaning it would be an easier target.  If a house had several days worth of newspapers sitting in the driveway or a trashcan sitting on the curb on a non-trash day, the same conclusion could be drawn. Consider another possibility;  a house with a clean, well-maintained yard, no newspapers or flyers laying around, a security system sign along with decals on the windows, a “Beware of Dog” sign by the back yard, and working exterior lights.  If there is an automobile parked in the driveway, high-quality locks, and door reinforcement so much the better.  In other words, a house that appears to be occupied. Which one do you think is more likely to get broken into? Appearances matter folks.

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Who’s at the door?  There’s one easy and fairly inexpensive way to find out, its also a great way of hardening your home.  Here’s a clue…

Peep Hole

Having a peep-hole in an external door will allow you to see who is at the door.  This is crucial because only Superman can see through solid objects.  Knowing who is outside is critical information because the easiest way for a bad guy to gain entry into a home is for somebody to let him in.

I’ll admit that this was one of the last items I installed in my house, years after I put in my security system and exterior lights.  Looking back, it should have been the first item I installed, along with better locks.  Thankfully, my lack of a peep-hole never resulted in any problems but I don’t recommend putting this off.  If you don’t have one installed already, get one installed ASAP because the money you spend on this item (circa $20) can make your home much safer.

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If you don’t have a security system, I suggest you get one as soon as you are able to.

GE Simon XT Home Security System

First, a few caveats.  Owning a security system will not make your home impervious to burglars.  It also won’t decrease police response times if the alarm is triggered.  Plus, most municipalities charge fees for security systems and fine you if a false alarm is triggered.

So why have one?  The short answer is that it adds another layer to your home’s security.  An alarm system provides some additional benefits on its own, but combined with high-grade locks, reinforced door jambs, lighting, window security film, and other measures, it becomes an integral part of a robust domicile.  A multi-layered approach towards hardening your home is less prone to being compromised because a potential burglar would have to defeat all security measures before being able to break-in.  More layers means more time and effort, which makes a secure home a less desirable target for a thief.

There are a myriad of different systems out there but most use three techniques to detect an intruder.  These are:

  • Motion sensors
  • Glass-break sensors
  • Door/window sensors

Also, the security system will use two primary means of contacting the alarm company if these sensors detect a problem.

  • Landline (telephone wire)
  • Wireless (cellular telephone)

Which one is right for you?  That’s outside the scope of this article but any reputable security company will send out a technician to evaluate the proper setup for a given home.  There are a lot of different options to choose from so carefully consider your home’s needs before making a decision.  What is important is that you add a security system to your home if you don’t already have one.  It will help deter criminals and give you greater peace of mind.

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Confession time, this series on “Hardening Your Home” is going to be a bit like a Tarantino movie.  No, these posts won’t involve snappy dialog coupled with bloody violence!  What I mean by that is the story will not be told in a chronological fashion.  For example, the deadbolts that are currently installed on my exterior doors.

Schlage Light Commercial Deadbolt

These were installed a few weeks ago, which was before I installed the EZ Armor I mentioned in the previous post.

While the timing isn’t important, the reason why I opted to update my lock hardware is.  Not long ago, I read some articles on lock bumping and decided to take measures to prevent this from happening.  Essentially, a criminal can defeat most locks in less than a minute using a bump key and a hard impact.  You can watch a video of it by going here, which shows how simple and fast this technique is.  Since my lock hardware was purchased from a big box retailer after I purchased my home, I decided it was time to upgrade and improve my defenses.

I decided to get Schlage Light Industrial deadbolt locks and passage handles.  These are only available from locksmiths and are constructed from higher quality materials than normal locks.  These locks are designed to be bump and pick resistant, which makes it more difficult and time-consuming for a would-be intruder to break into my home.  Another great feature is they can be re-keyed by a non-locksmith.  A set of these locks is about twice what a normal set would cost at a home improvement store, however the added security and peace of mind you gain is worth it.

Better locks combined with door reinforcement added an additional layer of security to my home.  In my next post, I’ll discuss how I use lighting to deter crime.

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Believe it or not, most criminals break in to homes through the front door.  The reason is most residential doors aren’t strong enough to resist an attack.  The door jamb usually lacks the reinforcement necessary to resist a strong kick from a criminal.  This means even if you lock your doors, your home and family still aren’t safe from a determined onslaught.

Two weeks ago, I decided to do something about this by installing EZ Armor on both my front door and my garage door.  I’d spent some time researching these types of products and found that this particular product was the best one available for my house.  EZ Armor comes in a kit that reinforces the door jamp, hinges, and locks with powder-coated metal plates.  These are mounted with long screws that go into the frame of the house, which further reinforces the door.  Watch this video and see for yourself.

I liked it so much I decided to post a link on my website so visitors can order it.  If you have some time, check out the manufacturer’s website for more information too.  Its a great product from a company with a compelling story to tell so give it a look.

The last thing to keep in mind is that effectively hardening your home is multi-layered and has redundancy built in.  In upcoming posts in this series, I will mention how important locks, security systems, and lights are to your home’s security in addition to reinforcing the door jambs.  While there isn’t a single “magic bullet” that will make your house safe, there are several steps security-minded homeowners can take that will make their domiciles more resistant to home invasion.

Click here to purchase EZ Armor for your home

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I’m working on a series of posts about how homeowners can make their domiciles more resistant to crime.  It will be called “Hardening Your Home” and is intended to give readers actionable security advice they can begin to implement immediately.  This will be accomplished by taking a multi-layered approach that adds redundancy to your home’s security.  I’ll recount my experiences with this process over the past few years as I have sought to increase my home’s security.  Hopefully my stories and advice will enable you to do the same and experience greater peace of mind as you take action to make your home safer.

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If you have Kwikset Smartkey locks installed, you may want to read this article from Wired about how easy they are to pick.  The Smartkey has a slightly different internal mechanism than most other locks which makes it invulnerable to lock bumping, however it can be picked with relative ease.  As one of the lock hackers wrote:

It’s very clever because the consumer can instantly reprogram the key, but it’s also insecure,” Tobias says. “There’s a lot of positives for Kwikset, but the problem is they can be opened in 15 seconds with a screwdriver and a paper clip. It’s not a pin-tumbler lock so that it doesn’t have the inherent physical strength to block the plug from turning when you do certain things.

This is one of the risks posed by common door locks and hardware that are available from major home improvement retailers.  The deadbolts may be inexpensive and ostensibly secure but as the article showed, there is a weakness in the design of the lock.  My suggestion is to immediately replace this hardware if you have it installed.  Contact your local locksmith and see what high-security alternatives they can provide.  The hardware may cost a bit more, but the benefit of more robust home security is worth far more than the incremental cost of higher quality components.

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Looks like LA may soon be following Detroit’s lead when it comes to Chapter Nine Bankruptcy protection.

South Central LA

Credit: News Genius

You can read about it here but the refrain is a familiar one, municipalities spend too much on generous pensions and get caught in a bind when the economy slows down.  Couple that with high taxation, rising crime, crushing regulatory burdens, lousy schools, along with a poisonous political climate and you get…Los Angeles.  Well, at least the weather is better in the City of Angels than in Detroit.  As California Pension Reform President Dan Pellissier said last week:

I think your city of Los Angeles is probably two to three years away from being in the same position that Detroit is where there is not enough money to pay the bills…[L.A.] can’t project, going forward, a stable budget because they face the same pension problems that everyone else in the country does.

Given the current financial situation many cities find themselves in, individuals need to prepare to take care of themselves.  The government won’t always be there to protect you or help you during your time of need.  Independence and preparation are a better course of action than dependency on increasing stressed municipal departments.  What are you going to do today in your life to become more independent?

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One concept that many of us need to be more aware of is Operational Security or OPSEC.  In a nutshell, OPSEC is keeping information from potential adversaries.  For the military, this means keeping details of movements and future operations secret.  For civilians like you and me, that means not broadcasting your whereabouts or other important details.  Being careful about where and when information is divulged will help keep you safe and protect your property.

This is important in today’s world.  Let’s face it, we live in a connected world where social media is ubiquitous.  Many of us can instantly communicate where we are and what we are doing with our smartphones and tablets.  While this can be fun and harmless, it can expose people to additional risk if the wrong people get hold of important information.  And as recent events illustrate, what gets posted on social media does not stay private.

What does this all mean?

If you are at a restaurant, sporting event, or landmark and you post about it on a social media site then everybody who can read your post knows where you are.  Criminals can use this information to stalk you, rob you, or break into your home.  I won’t get into the whole subject of meta-data collection, but the more you post on social media sites the more information private and governmental entities have on you.  Ask yourself if you really need to post your whereabouts and status to the world?

To maintain good OPSEC, consider making a couple changes in your habits.  First, only let trusted people know your whereabouts before you go somewhere.  Second, if you want to post pictures, review, or other observations about an outing, do so after the event.  Third, when you have plans to go somewhere, don’t feel compelled to let the world know about it on social media.  All of this information is not time-critical to those who aren’t going to be with you, it can wait.

The key concept is to be careful with what you divulge to others.  Information is power and the more you reveal, the more data a potential adversary (ex. burglar) has on you.  Both good guys and bad guys use social media so treat the information you post on it with great care.  Taking a few small steps to increase your OPSEC will yield much greater safety and security in the connected world we live in.