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Working Smoke Detectors, CO Detectors Save Lives

/2 Comments/by American Alarm Blogging Team

Working Smoke Detectors, CO Detectors Save LivesOn Wednesday February 12th, a woman in her 50s lost her life when a fire broke out in an apartment of a three-family home in Cambridge, Mass. Fire officials determined the cause of the fatal blaze was an electric baseboard heater that may have malfunctioned.

The home fire alarm system (smoke detectors) inside the apartment, as well as throughout the building, had been disconnected or did not have batteries, said Cambridge Fire Chief Gerald R. Reardon.

“A working smoke alarm coupled with an escape plan can double one’s chances of surviving a fire,” he said.

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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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5 Ways to Prevent Credit Card Fraud

/by American Alarm Blogging Team

American Alarm - 5 Ways to Prevent Credit Card FraudIn an alarming statistic reported by Forbes, 42% of people in the United States have experienced some type of credit card fraud occurring to their account. After the card information has been stolen, an average amount of $5,000 in fraudulent activity occurs before the problem is fixed. Although credit card companies and banks are doing more to prevent this issue, it is, unfortunately, still up to the card holders to do as much as they can to prevent credit fraud.

We recently put together an infographic outlining the strange life of a stolen credit card — today we’d like to discuss our top 5 ways to prevent credit card fraud.

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Business Security Trends for 2014

/1 Comment/by American Alarm Blogging Team

The business security system market will show strong growth in 2014, driven by access management and video, according to James Cook, sales manager for American Alarm.

The Boston Marathon bombings demonstrated the importance of video cameras, as we mention in a recent blog post. Investigators used video from a number of businesses in the Copley Square area to identify Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who are suspected of the bombings.

The need to manage access to buildings via video surveillance systems and alarm systems that include enhanced access control is being driven in large part by the school shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut as well as other schools across the country, Cook says.

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Home Security Trends for 2014

/1 Comment/by American Alarm Blogging Team

When 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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[Infographic] The Strange Life of a Stolen Credit Card

/by American Alarm Blogging Team

Credit card fraud is a frightening hazard of commerce in the modern age, spurred on by our increasing reliance on Internet shopping along with increasingly brazen in-person high-tech cloning operations. How do credit card numbers get stolen? What happens to those numbers once they are in the hands of thieves?

We’ve put together this infographic to help explain not just the mechanics of how your credit card number could end up being sold to the highest bidder, but also who is out there purchasing this illicitly-gained data and what they are willing to pay for it. Keep reading – the answers to these questions, and more, might surprise you.

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Top 5 Home and Business Security Posts of 2013

/1 Comment/by American Alarm Blogging Team

It’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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Fire Safety Tips For Holiday Trees and Ornaments

/1 Comment/by American Alarm Blogging Team

Fire Safety Tips For Holiday Trees and OrnamentsWhen it comes to lighting your holiday tree, the number one holiday safety tip from fire officials is “never use lighted candles as decorations” — so imagine our concern when we saw this blog post, “How to Put Real Candles on Your Christmas Tree Safely.”

“Real candles on a Christmas tree can be stunningly beautiful, moving, but if you don’t know how to do it safely, it can be very hazardous. If you know how to do it right, it can be a very good and safe experience. Think it’s crazy?” the authors of the post ask.

Yes, here at American Alarm where home and family safety is our top priority, we think it borders on crazy and substantially increases the risk of fire damage or disaster.

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’Tis the Season for Giving and . . . Taking

/by American Alarm Blogging Team

’Tis the Season for Giving and . . . TakingAfter scouring the Internet for months you’ve finally scored that hot – not to mention super expensive – electronic gadget all the kids want this holiday season on Amazon. However, one look at your child’s face when he rips off the wrapping paper will make all your efforts worthwhile.

That is, if your package doesn’t get stolen before you even know it’s been delivered.

Here are some tips courtesy of the Boston Police Department to keep thieves from making off with the packages filled with the holiday goodies you buy online:

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