Security and Alarm Systems Blog

By using sites like Facebook or Twitter you may be leaving yourself open to burglary due to the personal information you may be sharing. This finding is supported by a report from insurance company Legal & General warns. Anyone who goes on Facebook or Twitter and posts a vacation or even just a dinner, is leaving themselves open to a burglary. This is because they are advertising that their home will be vacant. If a user’s first and last name can be found on a social networking website, then they are susceptible to burglary because of the ease of using the internet to track down the person’s address. Applying a little bit of common sense to what people post, a burglar can estimate the better homes to burglarize. For example, if a person’s tweets always have them going to expensive restaurants, then their home may be a larger target for burglars.

Here are some tips to prevent burglary from a social networking site. First, make all of your accounts private, and only let trusted friends and family have access to your site. If a friend starts behaving erratic, or they betray your trust, do not be afraid to un-invite them from your posts. The most important preventative measure you can take is to have a security system that is well designed, and to use it. There are many security system installation companies that do not install an air tight system, in order to assure the sale or increase their profit. Another great tip is to be careful of what you advertise. For example, do not post that you will be going on a vacation, be out of town for a weekend, etc.

In many communities in San Diego, Irvine, Los Angeles, Riverside and Temecula a security system can prevent a burglary. These cities are all great places to work and live, and the social networking websites are very popular in these cities.

This year to date, Orange County Sheriff has arrested on 20% of reported crimes, which is an improvement of 5% from 2008. There have been 888 total property crimes across several different categories (burglary, robbery, theft, larceny, motor vehicle theft), and this is about a 6% drop in property crime since last year. So, crime in Orange County has dropped while arresting activity has increased. These statistics are a good sign for the people of Orange County.

Even though these numbers show improvement, however, there is still a large need for protecting your home or business with a security system. Whether you are securing a business in Irvine, preventing theft in Anaheim or getting a security system in Santa Ana, a burglar alarm has been proven to increase the probability of catching your burglar and retrieving your assets.

Property Crime in California Homes and other property went down every year in the 1990’s, but then there was a rise from 2000-05. The most recent data available on California’s crime statistics is from 2007, with the California Department of Justice. There was a total of 681,235 property crimes in 2007 in California, which amounted to a Crime Rate of 1,803. This means that nearly 4% of the population in California was the victim of Burglary, Larceny or Theft. Another half of a percent (0.5%) of Californians were victims of a more severe property crime, such as Robbery or Aggravated Assault. The probability of being murdered in California in 2007 was one sixth of one percent, and the probability of being raped was one quarter of one percent.

The majority of these crimes happen at home. There are many ways to prevent burglary, larceny, theft and robbery. And even rape and murder can be prevented with a security system designed for full protection. Full protection means that your security system has a contact on every door from the outside, and every window is contacted as well. Also, a strategic use of motion detectors and glass break detectors will act as a secondary measure in case the intruder finds a way into the home that does not trip the contacts.

The sad thing is that many people have security systems, and they just don’t use them. The number one reason is that their system has had false alarms so they simply don’t use it anymore. Others never think of the value a security system in California can offer, until it’s too late.

Murder and rape are obviously the worst crimes imaginable, but being burglarized can have a very dramatic effect on someone’s feeling of safety. In a burglary, an intruder breaks into your private residence, touches your things, takes your valuables. The psychological impact of a robbery is sometimes very difficult to overcome. Some long term effects of burglary are a lack of sleep, mistrust, and paranoia.

There are many home security companies in California, so how do you know which one to use? There are three important criteria. First, they must be licensed by the state of California (CSLB) or you are liable for any damage they do to your house during the installation. Second, it is much better to go with a local security company that has a good reputation for installing and servicing your security system. This is important because if the company is too small then they probably ore unlicensed, but if they are a nationwide security installation company then their service will be horrible.

The third important criteria is the old adage that your dad always said, “You get what you pay for.” It is smart to get at least three quotes for a home security system. If one or two of the quotes seem abnormally low, then they are low for a reason. In my opinion it is irresponsible of a company to offer to install a security system that will not fully protect the customer, just for the sake of underbidding the competition. A security system’s function is to protect your family, and does not deserve compromise in any way. The best way to handle the quotes is to look at what you will get for the price they have offered, and do the research on the company. If their BBB rating is bad, or there are bad reviews on www.yelp.com, then you may end up being one of those victims who has a security system but never uses it because it is dysfunctional.

California must reduce its prisoner population by around 40,000 inmates over the next two years, a panel of federal judges ruled on Tuesday. Earlier this year the same panel issued a preliminary ruling that California’s prisons are so overcrowded that they offer unconstitutionally poor levels of medical and mental healthcare for inmates. The preliminary ruling had mandated that the state reduce its prisoner population. The state made further arguments and tried to demonstrate that it was making a good-faith effort to improve prison conditions, and the ruling hadn’t been enforced.

California’s prisoner population has gone from around 30,000 in the late 1970s to around 170,000 today. These numbers grew because of laws like Three Strikes and You’re Out, mandatory minimum sentences for categories of drug offenders and a stringent parole system. Generally, over the last 15 years, the crime rate has dropped.

It is difficult to say if there will be a backlash from these released prisoners, but common sense say that drug dealing, violence, burglary, theft and even murder rates will increase. It is likely that California cities with large populations, such as San Diego, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino will all see a rise in the crime rate because a majority of the prisoners will be released into their populations. However, it is also possible that small suburban cities such as Irvine, Anaheim and Santa Ana will be effected by the prison releases also.

The Los Angeles times wrote “The order cited Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s own words when he proclaimed a state of emergency in the corrections system in 2006 and warned of substantial risk to prison staff, inmates and the general public, saying ‘immediate action is necessary to prevent death and harm.’”

The San Francisco Chronicle reported that the judges believed “by changing parole practices and releasing some low-risk inmates to local custody, treatment programs or electronic monitoring, the prison population can be reduced ‘without a meaningful adverse impact on public safety,’”

PDF of Court Order

Do you think a Security System is an important investment? Well, six out of every 10 employees stole company data when they left their job last year, said a study of US workers. Most American businesses fail to take important steps to prevent data theft (read our blog for a detailed article). This can be a frightening figure for any business owner or manager. Think about the damage an employee you have just laid-off or fired can do. But this can be prevented with a good security system.

Read the full Article : 6 of 10 ex-employees have stolen from your company

Every Security System we install from San Diego to Riverside to Irvine is outfitted with a DMP Security Control Panel. Digital Monitoring Products, or DMP is a recognized leader in network and cellular alarm communications. We choose to partner with DMP for many reasons.

They are always improving their security technology,

Their equipment is easy to use and install, but still state-of-the-art functionally

Their equipment has the best and longest performance in the idustry

DMP offers software to communicate with their panels from offsite

These are just a few of the main reasons we choose to install DMP control panels and keypads. There are so many options we can offer our customers because we partner with DMP. A new and exciting feature is the ability to communicate an alarm over a home or business network (using the internet) rather than the old way through a land line. Also, the new ePad allows our customers to arm and disarm their system using a web interface from anywhere in the world. By far, however, the most important feature of a DMP Security control panel is that we can install security, fire alarm, and door access control equipment to it. The programming features allow for this integration, ahich is great for our customers because it saves them money, and allows us to be more competitive with companies offering sub-par alarm equipment.

So many people have a monitored security system, and don’t know exactly what the monitoring entails. Well, here it is in summary. Security systems signal an alarm when tripped. This signal sends data which makes it’s way to a central station via one of three methods. The traditional method is through a land line, and many people still have land lines ONLY for their security system. The second method is through a cellular device, using cellular towers. This technology is not completely developed yet, so we only recommend using cellular as a back-up means of signaling in case phone lines are cut. And, the third method of security data transmission is over the internet.

Once the alarm signal is sent to the central station, they take predetermined actions based on a protocol made by the customer. For example, the protocol might be to call the business owner first, the VP second, and then call the police if they are both inaccessible. A common protocol for a home security system is to call the homeowners cellular and home, and to only take action when directed. This prevents false alarms, but can be dangerous if the homeowner is not always around their cellular.

The entire transaction is recorded by the central station, so in case there are any issues with the following of the protocol.

Any burglar alarm installation is not complete without the bare necessities. What are these necessities, though? The first, of course, is a control panel and at least one keypad. These are the brain of the system, taking in the programming from the technician, and acting intelligently based on information given by equipment. The Equipment is the second security system necessity. Security equipment such as door and window contacts, infrared motion detectors and glass break detectors alert the control panel that something fishy is happening. The third, and final, very necessary part of any alarm is a well-trained user. Without a person to arm and disarm the system, it is useless. I hear some of our customers here in San Diego tell me that they don’t use their system. This breaks my heart, because (1) they pay for it and (2) they are susceptible to a burglary which could be avoided (or at least minimized) by their security system. So, What Equipment Should Come Standard With Any Home Security System? A Control Panel, keypad, security equipment, and person that uses the system.

Falls are the leading cause of accidental deaths among people over the age of 75 and the second leading cause for those aged 45 to 75, according to the National Safety Council. There are also other medical emergencies such as strokes and heart attacks. Many elderly people live alone, but a medical emergency can happen when their spouse is away or even asleep. This is why it may be helpful to add medical alert functionality to your security system. Imagine a man having a heart attack in his mobile home, and having no way to call for help. Having a wireless medical alert transmitter could save his life.

Yes, we have had a modest presence in Orange County for decades. But now we are actively courting security installation business in Irvine, Santa Ana, Anaheim and even Los Angeles. Please click on the appropriate link below for more details:

California Alarm Systems
Security System Orange County
Security Systems Irvine
Security Systems Santa Ana
Security Systems Anaheim
Alarm System Los Angeles

Of course, we still install burglar and fire alarms, surveillance and door access in San Diego, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties.