Posts

Why You Should Think Like a Burglar

/by American Alarm Blogging Team

Why You Should Think Like a BurglarWhen you’ve decided to set up your new home security system, you’ll also need to take the time to actually think like a burglar. In other words, if you were a burglar, where would you target and why? The mentality of a burglar is one of exploitation and knowing where to target at the right time.

We recently published an article about the mindset of a thief from a business security perspective, and wanted to switch gears and focus on home security. Taking the time to protect your home cannot be underestimated; it is your most prized possession and placing it in this type of jeopardy is not worth the risk.

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Home Alone Summer Safety Tips for Kids

/by American Alarm Blogging Team

Home Alone Summer Safety Tips for KidsBefore you know it, school will be out for the summer and you’ll be trying to figure out if your child is old enough to stay home alone during the day while you’re at work or out running errands.

Many states, including Massachusetts, don’t have laws on the books indicating at what age a child is old enough to stay home alone. However, the Washington, D.C.-based Safe Kids Worldwide says that developmentally, children are typically ready to be home alone around the age of 12 or 13.

Despite your child’s age, only you can determine if he or she is ready to stay home alone this summer.
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How to Prevent Accidental Poisoning at Home

/by American Alarm Blogging Team

How to Prevent Accidental Poisoning at Home

Approximately 90% of poisonings occur in the home and more than half of them involve children under 5. Those staggering statistics come courtesy of the Regional Center for Poison Control and Prevention Serving Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

Exposure to poison can take the form of inhalation, ingestion, absorption through the skin, or injection (as in an insect sting), according to the center. Carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning is also a real danger. Although cases of CO poisoning increase during the cold weather, it is still the most common cause of poisoning deaths in the United States.

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4 Ways to Save Money on Your Homeowner’s Insurance

/by American Alarm Blogging Team

4 Ways to Save Money on Your Homeowner’s InsuranceIf you’re like the rest of us, you’re looking to save money any way you can. You make sacrifices like eating out less, cutting back on vacations, and buying fewer clothes. However, there’s another way to save money – by taking advantage of the discounts your insurer offers on your homeowner’s insurance.

Here are four way ways to lower the costs of your premium, courtesy of the Insurance Information Institute.

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5 Tips to Protect Your Pet in Emergencies

/2 Comments/by American Alarm Blogging Team

American Alarm - 5 Tips to Protect Your Pet in EmergenciesAs a leading provider of home alarm systems, we’ve written a lot about things you can do to ensure the safety and security anyone living with you – and, of course, yourself. Everything we do is focused on helping you protect your family and your home in the event of an emergency or natural disaster — but what about your furry, four-legged family members? Don’t forget to take them into consideration when you develop your family’s emergency preparedness plan.

We offer you five tips, some of which are courtesy of The Humane Society of The United States, to protect your pets in emergencies and natural disasters:

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Home Security Trends for 2014

/1 Comment/by American Alarm Blogging Team

american-alarm-home-security-trendsWhen it comes to what’s in store for the home security system market for 2014, the buzzword is still “traditional,” according to James Cook, sales manager at American Alarm.

“We’re selling more traditional home security systems, not the other stuff and that’s what’s generating our growth,” Cook says. “Although I expect that things like full home automation and other add-ons will continue to grow a little bit after people get more comfortable with technology.”

Cook says that while some homeowners may like the add-ons including mobile apps and remote monitoring, the main reasons they invest in home security and alarm systems are to prevent burglaries and fires.

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Top 5 Home and Business Security Posts of 2013

/1 Comment/by American Alarm Blogging Team

top5_american_alarmIt’s the end of the year and time for a look back at the Top 5 Home and Business Security Posts of 2013. This year we saw a focus on keeping homes and valuables safe in the most-read content from our blog. Each post below offers some great tips to add to your calendar as we start a new year. Here’s a look at our top five posts of 2012.

Number 5: Is a Dialer Delay in Your Home Putting You at Risk?

The all-in-one security system is attractive, but many systems include a four-minute notification delay to avoid false alarms. This post explores how thieves can rob you blind in four minutes and why you need to question your alarm company about such a delay.

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Video Surveillance System Trends for 2014

/3 Comments/by American Alarm Blogging Team

Camera Video Record in the evening.Video surveillance systems are quickly becoming key components of both business and home security strategies — a trend that will expand into 2014.

For business owners, incorporating IP video surveillance into your business security system can play multiple roles when it comes to protecting your company’s assets.

With a high-quality business video surveillance system, you can see what’s happening inside your store at any given time, and trained personnel can keep and eye out for potential shoplifters. If you catch a criminal, your video surveillance system can give you evidence you need to hand over to police.

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Tips for a Frighteningly Fun and Safe Halloween

/by American Alarm Blogging Team

halloween-safetyThe witching season is upon us. A magical time for ghosts and ghoulies – or princes and princesses – to scamper through their neighborhoods in search of Halloween sweets and other treats.

We here at American Alarm love this spookiest day of the year, but before we head out to a local thrift store to put together our perfect costumes – we’re leaning toward superheros or any of the four Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – we want to offer some helpful tips to ensure that you and your children have a spooktacular All Hallow’s Eve.

Some of these tips are brought to you by the police department of the city known throughout the world as Witch City – haunted Salem, Massachusetts.

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Personal Safety — Urban Legend or Truth?

/3 Comments/by American Alarm Blogging Team

personal safetyUrban legends — stories told around the office cooler, or at your child’s soccer game, or among friends after work — aren’t always harmless tales designed to provide a few scares or laughs the pass the time. Sometimes, urban legends that prove untrue can have individuals worried about scams or crimes that actually don’t exist, which makes it that much harder to believe in the occasionally sensational methods used by criminals that only sound like a tall tale.

Consider a recent report from the Today show about ‘sliders.’ This unlikely term has been applied to thieves who target women pumping gas into their cars. With the purse on the front seat, and their attention diverted to the act of fueling up, these women are victimized by individuals who emerge from a nearby parked car, stay low to the ground, and snatch the purse through either an open window or an unlocked door. Although it sounds incredible, police are warning women not to leave their purses unattended at gas stations unless all of their doors are locked and their windows are sealed.

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