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RSS FeedHome Safety Tips from Hilton Head Kat |
Posted at Hilton Head Island Kat by Katheryn "Kat" Gardner
Oct. 8, 2009
Things Burglars Don’t Want You To Know
Sometimes we get a little complaisant. We get wrapped up in our own little world and forget that we may not be doing the simple things we need to do to keep our home and our families safe.
Thank you to Readers Digest for this article by Janice Lieberman on some things we need to be aware of in our daily lives.
Some of these tips will not apply to everyone, but read all of them anyway. You never know when you might need the info! Most of us have friends and family that could benefit from these also so feel free to pass this along!
Remember-This is written from information gathered from people serving time for burglary.
As always, for more blogs or to check out real estate in the Hilton Head Island/Bluffton area, please visit my website at http://www.KatGardner.com Remember-This is written from a potential burglars point of view. .
1. Sometimes, I carry a clipboard. Sometimes, I dress like a lawn guy and carry a rake. I do my best to never, ever look like a crook.
2. The two things I hate most: loud dogs and nosy neighbors.
3. I’ll break a window to get in, even if it makes a little noise. If your neighbor hears one loud sound, he’ll stop what he’s doing and wait to hear it again. If he doesn’t hear it again, he’ll just go back to what he was doing. It’s human nature.
4. I’m not complaining, but why would you pay all that money for a fancy alarm system and leave your house without setting it?
5. I love looking in your windows. I’m looking for signs that you’re home, and for flat screen TVs or gaming systems I’d like. I’ll drive or walk through your neighborhood at night, before you close the blinds, just to pick my targets.
6. Avoid announcing your vacation on your Facebook page. It’s easier than you think to look up your address.
7. To you, leaving that window open just a crack during the day is a way to let in a little fresh air. To me, it’s an invitation.
8. If you don’t answer when I knock, I try the door. Occasionally, I hit the jackpot and walk right in.
9. Of course I look familiar. I was here just last week cleaning your carpets, painting your shutters, or delivering your new refrigerator.
10. Hey, thanks for letting me use the bathroom when I was working in your yard last week. While I was in there, I unlatched the back window to make my return a little easier.
10. Hey, thanks for letting me use the bathroom when I was working in your yard last week. While I was in there, I unlatched the back window to make my return a little easier.
11. Yes, I really do look for newspapers piled up on the driveway. And I might leave a pizza flyer in your front door to see how long it takes you to remove it.
Well, enough for now! See my next blog for 10 more tips!
Sources: Convicted burglars in North Carolina, Oregon, California, and Kentucky; security consultant Chris McGoey, who runs crimedoctor.com; and Richard T. Wright, a criminology professor at the University of Missouri–St. Louis, who interviewed 105 burglars for his book Burglars on the Job.
Reader's Digest Contributing Editor Janice Lieberman shared these and more tips on the Today Show and in her blog.
Reader's Digest Contributing Editor Janice Lieberman shared these and more tips on the Today Show and in her blog.
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