Security & Fraud

Security & Fraud Report:

With all the buzz about commercial false alarms lately and stats being thrown around like a rookie in the WWF, it about time people learn the real reason false alarms occur in homes and businesses.

This area is one the largest security concerns for apartment dweller's today. It has been the birth of more violations than any other area in the multi-housing family. It's knowingly the easiest way for a thief to gain entry.

When I do a small business security check, I always start with the exterior of the building checking the fences, gates, walls and entrances for upkeep. It is important business owners maintain these crucial areas. A run down building exterior with lots of obstacles and materials lying around can be an invitation to a burglar.

Break-ins to parkades have always been and always will be a problem amongst apartment dwellers. How we deal with these unmonitored areas is up to the individual buildings owners and of course their fiscal budget. 

After several emails from concerned parents, I have created what I feel are the 10 most important home security tips to teach your children.

Please review this list with your youngsters and make sure they understand each and every safety tip.

What's the sense in securing your doors and windows when all a burglar has to do is smash the glass to gain entry? Securing your windows must not only include securing the casings that hold the window, it must also include the glass. 

If we want to speed up the response time from our emergency professionals, whether it be fire, police or ambulance we need to take some initiative which starts with installing well lit house numbers.

If you're thinking of building a new home, make sure you take the time to design your home security system.

The holiday season conjures up images of homes beautifully decorated, inside and out - homes that display Christmas trees with colored lights, silver tinsel, glitter balls and candy canes.

The Christmas holiday season is now upon us and it is good time to remind people to take preventative steps to make sure the criminals dont spoil your Christmas. This time of year is when the criminal makes the most of the opportunities that are afforded to them by the extra shopping, the hustle and bustle of town centers as we all rush around, and the enormous value of items that we purchase as presents and store in our homes until the big day arrives. We might also be more trusting and generous at Christmas when requests for charity are made, giving the unscrupulous people a chance to collect for their own causes. So what can we do to prevent us from becoming a Christmas victim?

Before investing in a new home, you need to take a serious look at the demographics of where you and your family will be living.

After checking schools, shopping and hospital locations, it's time to find out if your future neighborhood is a safe investment.

As I conducted a recent home-security evaluation, the homeowner informed me he had four outside doors. When I asked if that included the overhead garage door, he replied, "I don't consider the overhead garage door an outside door."

Chances are you know someone who has had their home burglarized, or perhaps you have been a victim of a home burglary yourself.

If you're paying monitoring fees for your home alarm system and don't know what a cellular or radio back-up is, you could be wasting your money. Get in the know, by contacting your alarm company and ask about their " line cut protection " options.

In a report to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada and the Attorney General of the United States prepared in October 2004 by the Bi-national Working Group on Cross-Border Mass Marketing Fraud, it is stated that identity thieves have been known to break into collection boxes to steal outgoing mail from residential mailboxes.

If we want to stay ahead of the criminal element, we must be able to deal with modern day spins associated with theft and vandalism. Its not just about the burglar or vandal who lurks around in the night shadows awaiting their next victim.

Lending your house key to someone is placing your largest investment and its contents right in the palm of that person's hand.

Think twice before indiscriminately granting access to everything you own. Don't feel pressured by overzealous tradesmen, caregivers, housekeepers or do-good neighbours to hand out your key.

Leaving a house unoccupied often or for a long stretch is one of the biggest risk factors for getting burglarized.

So if you're thinking of taking an extended vacation or plan to leave your home unattended for several weeks, why not consider a house-sitter? A house-sitter is a person who lives in and cares for a house while the regular occupant is away.

If you're thinking of purchasing an apartment unit in a new condominium building, you better make sure the builder's main attribute is initiative. Because in to-days world initiative might be the only thing keeping you and your family safe from the bad guys.

With gardening in full swing, green thumbs are quite often fixated on cutting lawns, pruning shrubs, fertilizing the garden, or monitoring dreaded weeds like "Creeping Charlie."

With the emphasis now a-days leaning on good home security, where do we go from here? Many lock experts are telling us that locks are the priority, since we want to discourage an intruder before he or she makes their grand entrance. 

Good security should be an essential factor when purchasing your new home. Buying decisions are quite often made on the size of kitchens or bathrooms with little consideration given to the importance of a good home security package.

As a security consultant, it's hard for me to comprehend that homebuyers are more interested in crown moldings than a practical home security system. Priorities need to be reassessed by new home purchasers to make a significant difference in crime statistics.

When I talk about T.L.C. I'm referring to Teaching, Learning and Communicating collectively as a lethal weapon in the war against crime. If we want to put a different spin on crime statistics we must take the time to educate ourselves and others by acknowledging the T.L.C. mindset.

With the nice weather upon us, we seem to fall into this mindset that the bad guys are in hibernation. Winters over, the coast is clear, so lets throw open all the doors and windows. A burglary isn't going to happen to me, it's just too nice outside!

There was a break-in at an apartment building. The residents couldn't figure out how the thieves penetrated the security. There were no signs of forcible entry and the apartment owners ruled out the culprit as being a building key in the wrong hands.

How many more cars are the bad guys going to steal? How may more homes are thieves going to add to their roster of conquests? How many more headaches are we going to suffer before we finally realize that we do have a choice. A choice that may mean shifting from reverse to drive in the common sense department.

Your Home Security with Frank Fourchalk is a unique radio feature designed with Home Security in mind. This is exciting, informative editorial content that brings home security tips to the radio listener.

Your Home Security with Frank Fourchalk is a series of professionally produced 60 second 'audio consumer tips' designed to provide the listener with practical approaches to securing their person and property. This radio feature is a unique vehicle to not only bring awareness of security issues to the consumer but also to provide a platform for a sponsor message as part of the package.

The YHS feature is an effective way to call attention to your commercial message. It is entirely possible to get lost in the 'message mix' on commercial radio but with YHS your message is tied to exciting and informative editorial content.

If your company or organization is interested in raising their profile locally, regionally or nationally, please contact YHS producer Steve Herringer at 604-531-6908 or e-mail at .

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