Senior Citizen’s Crime prevention

Posted by admin | Home Security | Wednesday 13 January 2010 12:35 pm

Of all the age groups senoir citizens ususally have a lower crime rate with the exception of purse snatching, home repairs, frauds and scams. Crimes of violence are most feared by older people because these types of crimes get so much press attention. These types of are least likely to happen to a senior citizen. Most murders and assaults are usually committed by a relative, friend not by a stranger. This is not to say not to be wary of strangers but to also be aware of your surroundings with all people at all times. A rape of a woman over 65 rarely happens. Always walk and show confidence in a relaxed manner. Make breif eye contact with approaching strangers. No matter how a senior citizen is victimized the crime has a greater effect emotionally and financially. Crimes to older people can be very devastating. We all have heard the expression, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Be sure your home has good locks, and use them. One thing you might do is replace the striker plate screws with longer 31/2″ screws. They will be long enough to penetrate into the door jam not just the door molding. Know your neighbors and have some idea of their family routine. If you see something out of the ordinary call your local law enforcement. They would rather do that than show up on a crime scene. Form neighborhood watch group in your area. If you start experiencing a higher crime rate start walking in groups in your area. Some neighborhood groups patrol in cars and have citizens band radios. Post signs in the area informing would be criminals of the watch group. Let your neighborhood know your home is a safe haven for a child and they can go to it in case of an emergency. Install a “wide angle” peep hole at a level that will be comfortable for your height. Don’t let anyone into your home unless they adequately show proper indentification. Even then confirm the person with the company they represent. If you have any suspicions don’t let them in. Tell them you will call for help if they need it and call the police of this contact. Trim all shrubbery to waist level. Don’t have any shrubbery that will block windows or provide a place where an attacker my hide. When you return home before unlocking you car doors, look around you and be sure there in no one is present or have followed you home. Some attacks have ocurred while a person was getting out of their car or walking to get into their home. If possible have the outside light on a timer if you will be coming home after dark. It’s not good to have it on during the day. It will be a clear beacon that might let a criminal know you are not there but will be coming home after dark.

Lock Out

Posted by admin | Home Security | Tuesday 29 December 2009 12:28 pm

We had just moved into our new home. My husband left for work, and I was home with our two boys, ages 4 and 1 1/2 at the time. After changing a smelly diaper, I took it out to the garage to dump it in the garbage. The door swung closed behind me with a resounding *click*. Next thing I knew, I was locked outside.

It was 3:00 in the afternoon – hours before my husband would be home. I didn’t have a cell phone with me either. Nor did I know our new neighbors. I was completely stuck. I could hear the baby start to cry inside…. now what??

My 4-year old was upstairs watching a show on T.V. I rang the doorbell and banged on the front door to no avail. He was completely oblivious. In the meantime, my toddler was looking at me through the window in the room adjacent to the entryway, crying. The dog stood there, as well. I wanted to dispatch him in a Lassie-like manner: Go – get your boy! – but he did nothing.

After 15 minutes of yelling like a banshee fool, I started to get desperate. Our home was situated on a giant hill, constructed into the side of it. Although we didn’t have a basement, there was a huge crawl space under the front deck, which was at the main floor level. The yard below was at least 30 feet underneath, and there was a second story above.

I had to get inventive in order to gain entry back into the house. I walked out to our garage and grabbed a medium-sized ladder. Struggling with the contraption, I went to the deck and put it up against the house. Slowly, I climbed up the rails, but I couldn’t reach the second story windows. So, back down I went. Feet back on the deck, I felt better. I’m so afraid of heights, but I still needed to get into the house. The dog started barking, adding to the noise.

There was another, much larger ladder lying on its side in the garage. I picked it up and tried to maneuver it outside. I must have been at least 20 feet long, folded up, and I found myself swaying from side to side just trying to walk it outside to the deck. Anyone watching with a video camera would have had the tape rolling. I would definitely be a star on America’s Funniest Home Videos.

After finally getting the giant ladder out to the deck, I next had to prop it up without taking out any windows. Yes, I am a woman, so this feat was definitely challenging. Finally, I had the ladder leaned against the side of our home. Now, I had to contemplate climbing up about 15 feet to the second story windows. Recall that the ground underneath our deck was about 30 feet below. If I fell, I would be hitting the ground about 45 feet later. On rocks. Whew!

Even more slowly than before, I started climbing up the rungs. I wasn’t sure about how steady the ladder was placed on the deck, so, in addition to being afraid of heights, I was worried about the stability of my climb. As I neared the second story window, I was trembling with fear. I couldn’t go any higher. I reached my arm up towards the window of the playroom and knocked. Nothing. I tried again, knocking a bit harder. One last time…. wait. Finally, I saw a little head pop up just above the window sill. Through clenched teeth, I said to my son: “Go downstairs and unlock the front door NOW!!!”

I finally got in the house, about 1/2 hour after getting locked out. And, I didn’t need to try to call my husband to rescue me, either. I learned some great lessons to avoid getting stuck outside in the future

First, make sure you always have a spare key stashed somewhere outside. There are many contraptions that you can buy that are not very obvious for hiding extra keys. Some even have combination locks to help prevent break-ins. Second, get to know your neighbors as soon as possible. If you can trust them, you may want to give them an extra set of keys to your home, and even your vehicles. Otherwise, you can at least go to them to use a phone or seek help in the event of an emergency. Finally, be aware of what is going on around you. As tough as it may be to raise kids and/or be at home with little ones, try to make sure that you always have your keys in your hand before leaving the house or your car. It may be easier said than done, but just by being aware, you may prevent getting locked out in the future.

Another great fix is to install a keypad outside your garage door (of course, this means that you have to leave the door to the inside of the house unlocked). You may enter a code to allow entry into the garage without a key or garage door opener.

Do You Know What Lock Bumping Is?

Posted by admin | Home Security | Thursday 10 December 2009 8:00 am

local-locksmithsEver heard of lock bumping? If not, you definitely need to make yourself a little more aware. Lock bumping is a new form of “breaking and entering” for even the dumbest of criminals. It’s so easy that kids can do it within seconds, and the scariest part of all is that it works on 90% of manufactured locks. In fact, most lock manufacturers refuse to comment about this growing problem, either because they’re just learning about it, or they have heard about it and have no idea how to fix it. Either way, the message of lock bumping needs to be spread like wildfire so that the good guys stand a chance against the bad guys.

How it Works: Using a bump key, or a regular key with a specific series of cuts (pattern is displayed everywhere on the internet) all an intruder has to do is stick the key into your lock, tap it 1-5 times with a tool such as a handle of a screwdriver, turn the key and open your door.

The process is so quick that your neighbors won’t even notice something is wrong. The intruder stands at your front door, inserts a key, gives it a love tap and turn the knob. Neighbors will think you gave your cousin, brother, friend or whoever an extra key.

So how do you protect yourself? There’s many ways to secure your home. If you can afford more expensive locks, Medeco offers a wide range of locks that can’t be bumped. Other ways to secure your home would be to have loud pets, alarm systems and extra lighting inside and out. Sticks in your sliding glass doors and windows, as well as window films, CCTV systems and video monitoring systems will help you to “step up” your home security.

Don’t be a victim of this crime. You’re possessions are way to important to let this go. Make sure everyone you know; friends, family, neighbors know about this technique that makes the dumbest criminals look smart. Creating bump keys is easy and affordable.

Like I mentioned before, the internet has offered all potential intruders unlimited information about creating a bump key and putting it to use. There are various YouTube clips that give you a visual of how this technique works, so look it up. Spread the word.

Protecting Yourself From Phony Locksmiths

Posted by admin | Home Security, locksmiths | Monday 7 December 2009 12:43 pm

They call them “Phony Locksmiths” and they’re flooding the market place all across the United States with large phone book ads and a never ending list of real phone numbers but phony addresses that do not exist. This is to make you think they’re a trusted local company.

What Phony Locksmiths Do

In short they mislead the consumer by quoting low prices over the phone but delivering an outrageous bill. The most outrageous story I know of was an 80 year old man that was charged $1700.00 to get back into his house at about 2:00AM (see first video). They threatened and intimidated him into paying.

Usually an unqualified person shows up at your door in there personal unmarked vehicle. Then instead of trying to pick the lock they just pull out the drill and drill it open. Now you need new locks also.

So to open a house, a $35 quote would go something like this…

$35 is just the Service/Trip charge, then however much they think the customer can pay for drilling (i.e. $100, $200 or even as much as $1000) then $189 for a lock.

Another one where the quote is for $55 to open the car but they try to charge $150.

Check Out This Video About Phony Locksmiths

I’ve placed a few videos below so you can see how they work to help make you a more informed consumer. These news reports are from back East but they ARE here in Utah.

How Can You Protect Yourself From Phony Locksmiths?

Maybe the best way to protect yourself would be to choose a locksmith that you know is from your town. Or one that a friend has used before or recommended to you.

Some say (I agree) you should find a Locksmith before you need one. Just keep a Locksmith in mind or better yet, program there number into your phone now just in case you or a friend ever needs one.

Unfortunately I’ve found YellowBook.com (who I advertise with) to be one of the worst offenders when it comes to allowing these fraudulent deceptive ad’s on there web site. I counted over 60 locksmiths with the same name “1 2 3 24 Hour A Locksmith” and they are all listed one after the other. That’s 6 or 7 pages in a row. And most, if not all the addresses they list as locations do not even exist. They show one right around the corner from my house.   It’s not there.

Courtesy of: Key Away Locksmith

Optimizing Your Security Strategy

Posted by admin | Home Security, locksmith, locksmiths, security | Tuesday 24 November 2009 4:50 pm

In all cases, these programs seek to provide guidelines on the protection of freight as it moves from one country to another. But at the same time, these programs must strike a balance between commerce and the flow of goods and the need for stronger security measures that inevitably slow that process.

Participants, particularly shippers, receive benefits that improve the flow of commerce upon arrival at a U.S. port. In many cases, it moves them to the head of the line for both clearance and exam requirements. Service providers benefit from the marketing advantage of participating in security initiatives, as it improves their ability to support the shipper through customs and creates more of a business partnership.

Maintaining cargo security programs remains a challenge for most firms as the guidelines require the input of many departments within the firm–from HR and IT to supply chain and security personnel. This challenge is enhanced during economic strife, as resources are scarce and the benefits of updating the program are not seen as immediately affecting the bottom line.

Furthermore, immediate attention is being levied on the pending implementation of ISF–or 10+2 data elements–which requires time and money, leaving the maintenance of cargo security programs at a disadvantage. However, for firms developing or maintaining a cargo security program, knowing where to turn for the latest resources to support a strong security base is now absolutely critical.

It’s no secret that exploring the new technology and software available today requires time for research and follow-through, yet few corporations break the mold by offering support to key concerns within their own organizations to fully understand all that’s available. To make this task a little easier, here’s a brief update on some of the emerging technology, organizations, and best practices that every security-minded supply chain professional should know.

Risk management and ISF resources

New developments in technology have sought to decrease the effort needed to maintain and monitor international supply chains. One program shippers should become aware of is C-TPAT Connection Inc., a group that offers assistance in both securing the supply chain while collecting the much needed data for 10+2 or ISF filing.

C-TPAT Connection Inc. offers corporations the ability to collect supply chain security data on business partners worldwide and give shippers an immediate feedback mechanism regarding their “risk” as a business partner for meeting C-TPAT and FAST guidelines. The difference between this program and related programs is its ability to capture data in six different languages, making worldwide partners more capable of providing information and remaining engaged for long-term security improvements.

In short, this group allows participants to email questionnaires to their business partners around the world. Responses are translated back into the sender’s language and an immediate risk assessment is provided, mirroring the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) color security rating now in effect in the United States. In addition, the program captures ISF filing data and allows users to download the information into spreadsheets for sharing with ISF filers (www.c-tpatconnection.com ).

Anti-piracy protection

For companies moving product in international waters preyed upon by pirates, the newly introduced SEAL Security Solutions, a Houston-based firm managed by a team of former marines, logistics professionals, and former military personnel, offers corporations cost-effective programs to prevent merchandise from being stolen in route.

SEAL has formed an alliance with the Sharaf Shipping Agency, a Dubai-based group that specializes in arranging for the movement of supplies to and from vessels. Together, these two firms provide vessel owners and shippers a highly trained security team comprised of people and assault dogs to provide around-the-clock observation with advanced optics and technology. With a 24/7 patrol team on deck and a tactical leader with radio communication, they aim to prevent pirates from boarding a vessel.

These security teams are available at strategic ports in areas of high piracy. With ransom of up to $3.4 million paid per vessel, and the cost of insurance in these areas skyrocketing or even unavailable, this service provides a cost effective way to ship through these areas of concern. Furthermore, it provides peace of mind to ship workers whose lives are at risk in these situations.

RFID update

For firms focused on security issues tied to tracking and tracing product, the updated electronic seal, also known as an “e-seal”, provides the technology required to monitor shipments from origin to destination.

Regulations in some industries require a traceability element, especially in the food and pharmaceutical industries. Using RFID capabilities, shippers will not only be able to track the shipment, but they’ll also be notified when the security of the cargo has been breached.

The U.S. Department of Defense will soon be using RFID tags, having recently purchased $6.6 million in RFID products from Savi Technology, a unit of Lockheed Martin. Savi is a founding member of the DASH7Alliance, a broad coalition of technology developers, manufacturers, test laboratories, and government organizations whose goal is to expand the commercial use of wireless sensor networks.

Look for RFID technology to soon be implemented in Munich International Airport, as the Wi-Fi RFID and GSP capabilities will be united via a tag that will be affixed to all passenger baggage dollies. This technology will allow the airport to begin monitoring its assets–and ensure that it’s charged cargo companies appropriately for their use.

Best practices

While the advances in technology will outline an easier path for monitoring security breaches, cargo security best practices still require a strong foundation of fundamental programs.

Developing and maintaining the minimum standards of C-TPAT means a corporation must first focus on threat awareness and then identify and prioritize the vulnerabilities in its supply chain. From there, it’s essential to develop a multidisciplinary team that’s focused on cargo security standards and trained to work together to target and reduce risk.

These are two basic steps a corporation should take before embarking on additional enhancements in supply chain security. At that stage, the need to embrace a continuous cargo security improvement plan is critical, as these programs tend to remain stagnant when they don’t produce results or boost the bottom line.

From a government-to-government point of view, this means developing true global standards that are capable of thwarting terrorist threats and adaptable by all corporations internationally. Customs agencies worldwide must be aligned for greater sharing of data and resources and develop a more trustworthy approach to confidentiality that will encourage greater participation in government-to-business programs.

Suzanne Richer is president of Customs & Trade Solutions Inc., a consulting firm specializing in international trade and cargo security. She can be reached at (609) 896-2210, Ext. 101, or via email at smricher@ctsiadvisors.com 1397778242

Container Security: What works? What doesn’t?

Jim Giermanski

Editor’s Note: Last month we asked our security technology expert Jim Giermanski to define the four categories of container security technology currently in use in today’s global supply chain. In fact, that feature became the most read feature online during the month of October. We decided to offer a short expert below, but if you’d like to read the feature in its entirety go to logisticsmgmt.com/security .

What works depends on the user’s level of need and the financial consequences produced by the technology. If a smart container moves the shipper through Customs faster and that improved speed and visibility turns a larger profit for the shipper, then a smart container it must be for that company.

However, if the user only locks the doors with a seal because Customs requires it, that can be perceived as effective security as well. Let’s quickly revisit the four distinct levels of technology and attempt to assess their level of effectiveness.

1. Doors-only : In this writer’s view, doors-only is not the best way to go. I have bypassed seals in a number of ways without disturbing the seal or the hinges. If you want to get in, you can.

E-seals can be even less effective than barriers seals. First, RFID is not applicable globally. There are too many divergent frequencies, protocols, and infrastructure problems. What’s worse, RFID for container security as it’s mandated in the United States serves as an improvised explosive device (IED), making it a vulnerability, not a security technology. Even CBP acknowledges its limited use.

2. Doors-plus : There is no difference between doors-plus and doors-only with respect to access; but the GPS function serves the tracing requirement specified in the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007.

3. Scanning : At this stage, if not for CBP canines, scanning wouldn’t do much either. It disrupts our trade flows and our trading partners simply don’t like it. Sometimes it works, but most of the times it doesn’t. It certainly does not work for detecting shielded enriched uranium, and even if it worked in our Container Security Initiative (CSI) ports–there are 58 of them–the scanned container could be subsequently accessed if it went through a transshipment port.

4. Chain-of-custody smart containers : What does work–and is just beginning to be used–is in-container satellite and satellite/cellular systems that have unique detection and environmental sensors. As stated above, these employ the chain-of-custody process and can communicate in real-time (or close to real-time) with the user and/or to government authorities.

By Jim Giermanski, Chairman, Powers Global Holdings Inc.

Courtesy of:  Locksmith Ledger

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