
Ask HN: Someone just tried to break into my home. Security tech recommendations? - ericb
I heard a noise that sounded like my fence swinging open and (foolhardedly) went out with a flashlight looking.  This morning, I see that the screen has been pulled out from it&#x27;s lining on a ground floor window. The window wasn&#x27;t locked, so they could have easily gotten in. I&#x27;m struggling with what sort of measures I need to take.
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runjake
I assume your actual goal is to prevent being burglarized. Security tech is
largely reactive. Why not work on proactive security first? It's not about
building an impenetrable fortress, it's about not being the easiest mark in
your neighborhood.

\- Lock your windows and doors at all times.

\- Trim back foliage that obscure windows and doors from the sidewalk.

\- Ensure you have proper exterior lighting. Shadows = bad.

\- Don't leave stuff like tools lying around the outsides of a house. Brooms
or longish poles are great for reaching through a cat door and jimmying
interior latches and deadbolts open. It's very, very easy with some practice.

\- Get a dog that barks. A big dog, a little dog, whatever. Just make sure it
barks (proactive alerting & will let the burglar know you aren't the "slowest
in the herd").

\- Get a (legitimate actual alarm company) yard sign and place it in your
yard.

\- If you're a gun person, avoid NRA/Glock/I'm a gun-toting bad ass stickers
on your vehicles, house, etc. That suddenly makes you a more lucrative target
worthy of greater risk.

\- Don't leave the boxes for your new plasma TV, Mac, etc out front, visible.
Maybe don't have Apple stickers on your car. That lets me know you like to
spend money on gadgets that fetch high resale value.

\- Get to know your neighbors. Arrange an agreement with a trusted one to keep
an eye out for each other when the other is away.

\- Case your own property as a burglar would. Pretend you forgot your keys.

Then, _after_ you take care of the preventative, start looking at reactive
solutions.

Source: I may or may not have been a miscreant in my youth.

~~~
ericb
I'm not sure I understand the nra/glock reasoning, but other than that, makes
sense.

~~~
FurrBall
Same reason you wouldn't advertise you have a stash of gold in the house.

~~~
ericb
The only people I know with guns are poor (possibly a coincidence). Are the
guns themselves valuable enough to make confronting a gun wielding home owner
worthwhile? Does saying you have a gun imply wealth? That's the part I'm not
following? What is the actual reasoning?

~~~
FurrBall
The wealth of an individual has no bearing on the value of an item. Guns
themselves are high value items. Easy to sell for several hundred dollars
depending on the model.

High end guns can be sold for several thousand dollars.

More value and liquidity than a TV.

~~~
FurrBall
Not to mention ammunition is extremely liquid. It's used as currency in some
countries.

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6d0debc071
\- Install a metal door frame and secure that with metal bolts into the wall
that go about two hand lengths deep.

When I was at uni someone burgled my flat by expedient of kicking the door
open - it was a thing you could see was going to happen even when you got
there, the door frame had signs it had been kicked open before. That put a
permanent stop to it. From what I've heard the next girl who lived there's
never had any problem with people kicking the door down either.

\- Spiky nasty bushes under the windows. People don't like standing in a bunch
of thorny crap to try and climb in.

\- Big motion sensitive lights, (make sure to stick them around the side too!)
People like lurking. Make sure that they can't just go and lurk around the
side of the house in the shadows.

Edit: Also, it might be worth seeing whether you can get some transparent
security film to stick to your windows. It makes it more difficult to just
smash the things and climb in.

~~~
mikeburrelljr
3M Security Film (it's the real deal - see demo video posted on YouTube):
[http://youtu.be/vYdVK3BqPfk](http://youtu.be/vYdVK3BqPfk)

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tocomment
You could do some basic stuff like motion sensing floodlights, and leaving a
light or two on at night inside the house (on a timer).

I've always been curious if one of these fake tv things would be any good.

[http://www.faketv.com/](http://www.faketv.com/)

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trebor
I've considered DropCam[1] for just the same reason in the past. There are
quite a few less expensive cameras available, with night vision even, that
support archival/streaming to mobile devices.

    
    
      [1]: https://www.dropcam.com/

~~~
illyism
I think a dud camera with a red blinking led has the same preventative force.

~~~
trebor
Except that a DropCam's footage is admissible as evidence in case of an actual
robbery. You won't get that out of a fake camera with a blinking light.

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jfb
A dog.

~~~
tom_b
Upvoted, but please consider that those breeds most associated with protective
tendencies are _high-maintenance._

I am an experienced dog owner and currently have a super-intelligent and high-
drive dog. But she's not a pet. Can't be allowed loose with the kids
unsupervised. Has strong fear-bite drive. Is a "one-person" dog (although she
has bonded with 3 or 4 adults).

If anybody is interested, I can probably provide more info or pointers, but in
general, I think a good rule is to equate protective dog breeds with firearms.
It's that big of a deal.

~~~
jfb
No argument here, but I think the delta between a dog and a watchdog is much
smaller than the delta between dog and no dog, if what you're worried about is
preventing intruders. I believe that the overwhelming majority of burglaries
are opportunistic, and a dog that barks is going to be pretty much sufficient
to send the thief down to the next house.

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thesmileyone
If you are going to get a dog, for security primarily, you need a PPD,
(personal protection dog). They cost around $35,000 for a proper one. And you
will have a friend for life when it is not in "guard mode".

The downside: have to speak to it in German/Dutch.

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FurrBall
Pre: Locks, security stickers on the windows, barking dogs, good lighting,
fake or real visible cameras.

During: security system that calls police. Fire arm (last resort).

Post: hidden cameras so you have a record of what happened.

