Seven Steps to Secure Your Home with Alarm.com

Protecting your home doesn’t have to be a stressful undertaking; in fact, securing your home against leaks, break-ins, or fires is easier than ever with technology from our partner Alarm.com. No matter how unpredictable life may be, their security systems offer reliable protection. iWired presents seven steps you can use to keep your belongings and loved ones safe with automated home security solutions.

Install a Home Alarm System

Burglars are significantly deterred from targeting your home when they know you have an alarm system; even a sign in your window or lawn may be enough to scare them off. Although many homeowners may feel intimidated by the perceived cost and upkeep of an alarm system, Alarm.com offers affordable options that pair with your smartphone for convenient management.

They’ve even incorporated AI into the platform, which works to recognize activity around a property and deliver contextual information to monitoring stations in the event of an alarm. This means there’s less chance of a false alarm, and in case of a true emergency, police, fire, or emergency medical services can be dispatched to your home depending on the situation.

Purchase a Home Security Camera

When placed at your front door, Alarm.com’s Wi-Fi Camera Doorbell can deter robbers and obtain justice in case of a break-in or package theft. The Stream Video Recorder (SVR) is a cloud-based streaming solution that records 24/7 and grants you secure access to video clips. You can speak to visitors at the front door through their app, even when you aren’t home. Users are granted total flexibility with custom triggers by time, day, camera, and motion, which can send you recent video notifications to your phone when there’s relevant activity. Once you see, for example, that your dinner party guests have arrived, you can tell them the access code for your smart lock, so you don’t have to leave the pots on your stove unattended even for a minute.

Reinforce Your Points of Entry with Smart Locks

The majority of burglars know how to pick locks, while some know how to bypass deadbolts. If you aren’t home, leaving a spare key for your neighbors under the mat is almost an open invitation for a break-in. While you could find a better hiding place for your key or invest in deadbolt protectors for your windows, doors, garages, and sheds, we suggest opting for smart locks instead. These are locks that are protected via user access codes that will operate even in a power outage. You can create and grant your friends and family unique codes that let you know who disarmed the system, and when. It only takes a moment to disable the code from your computer or tablet. Alarm.com’s smart system can also learn your family’s patterns and send you alerts for anything out of the ordinary, like a front door opening late at night that may be your teenager sneaking out to a party.

Buy Motion Detector Lighting

Motion detector lighting can stop a robber in their tracks in the dead of night and provide significant illumination for your cameras to capture movement and faces. Motion sensors also help alert your neighbors of suspicious activity when you’re away from home. This is one of the simplest and most affordable security solutions you can bring to your home to add another layer of safety to your home’s exterior.

Use a Strong Password for Your Wi-Fi Network

In today’s age, intruders can gain access to your private information without physically entering your home. Many amateur hackers can access your Wi-Fi network when you have a weak password and monitor your home to collect information that may assist them in a future break-in. Always use a strong password and don’t share it with anyone. Alarm.com has an app that allows you to control all of your smart devices from a centralized location, meaning you can lock your door, turn on your lights, and arm your property simply with the touch of a button. The app itself is secured to prevent hackers from gaining access to your security information if they do manage to breach your Wi-Fi network.

Create the Illusion Someone is at Home

Whether you’re out of town for the weekend or a month, it’s easy to make it appear like someone is in your house, even when they aren’t. By using an automated smart lighting system, your home will appear like someone is moving through the rooms throughout the day. The smart devices under Alarm.com can communicate with each other to know when to arm the system, turn on a kitchen light, turn off a living room lamp, and send you a notification in case of suspicious activity. For extra security measures, we recommend having a neighbor collect your mail to enhance the illusion.

Beyond Intrusion Alerts

Your home is full of multiple delicate systems, including your plumbing, HVAC, and electrical networks. Oftentimes, these pipes and wires are hidden within your home’s walls, but if one of these systems fails, your home’s infrastructure and your wallet will suffer the consequences if gone unnoticed. Alarm.com incorporates smart security sensors that alert you of unusual activity so you can take action to schedule service for a leaky AC unit or prevent your pipes from freezing and bursting in the forecasted winter storm.

iWired is proud to partner with Alarm.com, one of the leaders in smart home security to monitor and automate your home’s security. We offer numerous smart devices compatible with Alarm.com’s system so your property and loved ones stay safe no matter what may happen. Whether you’d like to install a camera doorbell or you have questions about motion sensor lights, contact our team at iWired today to begin!