What’s with “fishbowl” homes? I’m sure many of you have spotted these in your neighbourhood. These are houses that refuse to take cover at night. The owners seem oblivious to their surroundings. They don't they pull their drapes or turn the blinds. They’re all lit up and completely visible to passersby – and to burglars.
Many burglars like to scope out their targets before pouncing. So if you leave your draperies and blinds open at night, you could be creating a golden opportunity for a bad guy. Think about it: not only does the fishbowl effect display your hard-earned possessions, it also gives a clear picture of your every movement.
Picking up on living habits adds more ammunition to a burglar’s arsenal. Whether you realize it or not, you are exposing personal information to the wrong people. Information like who lives in the house and what possessions you own. The bad guy can even tell what rooms you spend most of your time in and what's in those rooms.
Many people are security-complacent and don't hold a high regard for personal safety and security. Part of the problem is human trust. Many people were born in a time when security awareness was not a priority, a time when they left doors unlocked and windows open. A time when they could go away for a week or two without having to lock their doors.
These are the people intruders love to victimize. Raising security awareness levels could help lower home burglary stats. But how do we do it? Perhaps we should visit the “fishbowls” of the neighborhood and tell them to close their blinds. Or maybe we should send shock waves displaying the cold, hard facts.
The facts are that burglars work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year. These surreptitious individuals for the most part look like average, hard-working citizens, making it easy for them to blend into our neighbourhoods – especially in darkness.
Once a prowler has a home in their sights, the perpetrator often parks the getaway vehicle on another street and walks to the targeted home. Preferred entry is forcing a back door or slipping open a window or sliding glass door. Once inside, the intruder usually heads to the master bedroom looking for jewellery, money or drugs.
The next stop may be the living room, dining room or family room. The thief will be looking for high-value compact items like laptops, iPods and cameras. For the most part, burglars are non-confrontational and will stay away from areas of entrapment such as basements or attics.
In fact, most thieves prefer single-storey homes with the master bedroom on the main floor. Corner houses are more of a target because they are usually more secluded and often off the beaten track. Homes on greenbelts are always a burglar’s favorite because they offer easy escape routes.
So, you see, the mind of a burglar is quite complex in organizing premeditated robberies. This is particularly true in the case of a “targeted burglary” – one in which the burglar gets an “order” for, say, a flat-screen TV. He scopes out a neighbourhood (often at night) until he sees what he wants. He then breaks into the home, steals the flat-screen and fills the order.
So how did the burglar know there was a flat-screen in the targeted home? Because the owners lived in a fishbowl.
Frank Fourchalk is a security expert with 20 years in the business. Visit his website.
