Common Sense Self Defense

If you’ve got it flaunt it, right? Wrong; though you’d never know from society’s obsession with over-sharing their personal lives on social media. Folks post everything from checking into a restaurant or vacation hot spot to photos of the interior of their home with new flat-screen televisions or gaming systems in the background. Heck, some people even share photos of their new firearms. Time for some common sense self defense pointers.

The truth is: sharing isn’t so bad if you know your EXACT audience. But you don’t; not online or even at the local hardware store. The smallest piece of information can aid a criminal.

At Home

It’s not like boasting is entirely new. People have been advertising their home is protected by [insert security company here] for years with signs on their lawns or in their windows as if that’s going to stop a criminal. In reality, advertising your home is protected by a security company does nothing more than give a criminal a head start (yes, you read that correctly). Professional home invaders take their time casing a neighborhood to determine the best time to hit and what houses to target.

Security signs on your front lawn or in your window give criminals a clue how to bypass your system. The sign tells them you have things worth protecting. The element of surprise only works if a criminal is unaware a home is protected. The most confident of criminals will abandon a home with a security system they’re unsure how to bypass. They know one wrong move and local law enforcement will be on their way.

Home Defense Tips

You probably know all these. But it’s worth reviewing these easy, largely free, tips.

Be careful what goes out with your trash. Flat-screen television, laptop, or gaming system boxes at your curb tells a criminal what you have in your home.
Going away? Draw your blinds and close your curtains to keep prying eyes from checking out the interior layout of your home as well as what you have.
Never schedule work, even landscaping, when you’re going to be away.
Invest in timers – whether it’s part of an overall security package you can control from your smartphone or the old-school timers you plug into the wall socket.
Strengthen ground-level doors and windows, which is where more than 50 percent of break-ins occur.

The best tip we can offer you is to use common sense. So, when you’re out back hanging with family and friends, remember to lock your doors and windows. Don’t use social media to announce your plans for the day or the weekend. You may think you’re telling just family and friends but you have no idea who is online trolling.

Conclusion

Lastly, make sure your social media profiles have the highest privacy settings possible. Some privacy policies change periodically so if you set your privacy settings a few years ago, it’s time to review and update. And make sure to include updating your passwords, too. In the digital world, protecting your home is just as much about being smart online as it is in real life – maybe more so.

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