Deception

• Sometimes all it takes to prevent a would-be burglar from breaking into your home is a little deception. Leave lights on in the the living room and any other high traffic room to give the impression that someone may be home. Leave the exterior lights above all of your doorways on as well to make a thief think twice about attempting to break in. Purchase timers that turn on your interior lights at seemingly random moments if you know you will be out for several hours. Leaving a vehicle in your driveway while you use another, can add to the illusion that someone is home. Another method of deception is to call your own home phone, or have someone you trust do so, let it ring a couple of times and then hang up to make it sound as though the ringing was suddenly interrupted. This may lead someone standing outside your home to believe that you are home because it sounds like you answered the phone.
  
  

Secure Your Home

• Aside from a home security system backed with a professional monitoring company, there are other things you can do to secure your home. Put iron bars on the windows that cannot be easily seen from the street to prevent someone from breaking in through those windows. Install your own wireless surveillance cameras that can be watched from any Internet connection, including your cellular phone. Install outdoor floodlights with motion sensors on them. The sudden appearance of light will usually scare away potential criminals.
  
  

Neighborhood Watch

• One of the more effective ways to discourage crime is to get your entire neighborhood involved in a neighborhood watch program. Develop shifts of three or more people that monitor the neighborhood at night in shifts of three hours each. Team up with the local police and ask the police what kinds of protection neighborhood watch participants can and should carry. Make sure every participant carries a bright flashlight and a cellular phone at all times.