By far, the most common threat to our home is burglary. According to the FBI, a Home Burglaries occurs somewhere in the United States every 15.4 seconds. By definition, the crime of burglary is a non-confrontational property crime that occurs when we are not at Home Burglaries. However, becoming a burglary victim can leave a family feeling vulnerable and violated. To avoid becoming a burglary victim, it is important to first gain an understanding of who commits them and why. The majority of home and apartment burglaries occur during the daytime when most people are away at work or school. The summer months of July and August have the most burglaries with February having the fewest crimes. Burglaries are committed most often by young males under 25 years of age looking for items that are small, expensive, and can easily be converted to cash. Favorite items are cash, jewelry, guns, watches, laptop computers, VCRs, video players, CDs and other small electronic devices are high on the list. Quick cash is needed for living expenses and drugs. Statistics tell us that 70% of the burglars use some amount force to enter a dwelling, but their preference is to gain easy access through an open door or window. Ordinary household tools like screwdrivers, channel-lock pliers, small pry bars, and small hammers are most often used by burglars. Burglars continue to flourish because police can only clear about 13% of all reported burglaries and rarely catch the thief in the act.
A Police Video on Preventing Home Burglaries…Protection Concepts works hand in hand with local police departments to help prevent home burglaries. While you cannot control the desire or the ability of the burglar, there are a number of things you can do to prevent the opportunity of a home burglary from happening to your family. Enjoy this short police video from the Orlando Police Department on Preventing Home Burglaries from occurring in your home.
America, it’s tax time! Did you know the IRS considers Georgia to be one of the top three states for tax return fraud? The IRS reports over 3 million tax payer accounts are hacked each year. They have doubled their manpower to protect tax payers from tax payer frauds. Once the thief gets your IRS information, they can use it to steal your identity for loans, and opening new credit card accounts.
What can you do to protect your tax returns from being hacked?
Be selective about who does your taxes. Make sure it is someone that has good reference from friends or family.
Watch for scams. At tax time people call or search your social media sites for information they can use to steal your identity. These people pretend to be IRS agents or representatives of tax software companies to get your information. The IRS never call on the phone for information!
Change your passwords often. When you use common passwords for places like financial institutions, credit cards or even your IRS account, it allows broad access to these accounts once your password is cracked. Passwords should be long and include a mix of numbers, letters, and symbols.
Check your credit report frequently. This is one of the simplest precautions you can use to prevent tax payer fraud. You can access three free credit reports a year on www.AnnualCreditReport.com.
It is recommended to file your returns early so you can beat the scammers to the punch.
Never put your tax returns in your mailbox. Put them in a postal box or hand them directly to a postal worker. E-filing is the most secure option for filing your taxes.
Conclusion
Follow the above tips to keep your tax returns more secure. If your tax returns are hacked, be patient. The IRS says the typical case of identity theft takes 120 days to resolve. A credit fraud can be a lifelong problem for identity theft victims.
Spring break is a rite of passage for many college students. You want to make these spring events to be memorable rather than having tradegic consequences.
Travel Safety
Make sure that whoever will be driving has a valid driver’s license. Be sure you are aware of exactly how to get to your destination and how to get back. Do you have a map if your cell phone is not working? Whoever sits in the passenger’s seat should stay awake to keep the driver company. Accidents are very easily caused by the driver falling asleep at the wheel.
If you’ll be traveling out of the country, you’ll need a passport and possibly a visa. Make sure that you know exactly what documents you’ll need.
Money and Valuables Safety
If you can, always use the ATM at the hotel where you’ll be staying. If there isn’t one available there, always choose one in a well-lit location and go with a group. You’ve heard this a million times, but always cover your pin number while you type it in!
Make sure you check your bank account regularly. You never know who may be lurking nearby waiting to try to take advantage of you. Check all the charges on your statement for legitimacy.
If you’re going to be traveling overseas, tell your bank at home where you’ll be going. If you don’t, they may see foreign charges and shut down your card, which leaves you in another country with no money.
Don’t wear or bring a lot of flashy luxury items. Especially overseas, lots of jewelry and expensive things attract attention. Anything valuable should be locked in a hotel safe during the day. Never leave your purse unattended.
Beach Safety
Make sure you know the flag system used by beaches. A red flag means you need to stay out of the water because of rip tides and dangerous currents. Yellow means to use extreme caution because there could be dangerous currents present, and blue means that the water is safe (but definitely doesn’t mean throw caution to the wind) Swim only in designated swim areas.
As much as you hated hearing this from your mom as a kid, you really do need to wear sunscreen and reapply every couple of hours. Believe me, vacationing stops being fun if you fry yourself.
Drinking
Do everyone a favor, especially yourself, and party smart. Be responsible. Decide before you go out what your limits should be. When you are sober making clear-headed decisions is the best time to consider what you feel your personal boundaries should be. Do I want to drink tonight? If so, how much? Deciding up front will make it easier for you later to make choices that you will be happy with after the party is over.
Sexual Activity
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First, don’t believe the hype about our hook-up culture. Not everyone is hooking up. Choices to have sex or not to have sex are extremely personal and shouldn’t be influenced by anyone’s mandates but your own. Know what consent is and respect it for all forms of intimacy. Silence NEVER equals consent. Consent can never be implied or assumed regardless of any previous history of sexual contact. No matter what a person verbalizes, consent can never be given when a person is severely intoxicated or impaired or at any point in the encounter after the person has said NO.
Conclusion
Always know where you and your friends are going and how you’re going to get back safely. Stay in a group, and always walk with purpose. People who look lost are easy targets. Most of all, be smart and have fun. Safety isn’t about being paranoid your entire vacation, it’s about having the best time possible while staying out of trouble. Odds are, you’ll return home with a load of great stories and be excited to do it all over again next year!
Fire pits are wonderful for summer family activities. They are places to gather the whole family whether enjoying the fire or roasting the traditional marshmallows. Great memories are made around a fire pit.
Fire is fire. There are specific things you should do to keep your fire pit safe for you, your children and your family.
Fire Pit Safety Tips
Determine the best place for your fire pit. Make sure it is away from overhanging branches and away from anything that can catch fire.
Check the wind direction before starting your fire pit. A strong wind will blow embers into surrounding places that can catch fire.
Never use gasoline or flammable liquids to start your fire.
Be careful not to overload your fire pit. Logs can tumble out of the pit into an area that can catch fire. Use the safety screen that comes with your fire pit.
Never leave the fire unattended.
Make sure that children stay at least three feet away from the fire. Don’t let them throw foreign objects into the fire. They could explode.
Never leave your fire to die on its own. Douse the fire with plenty of water. Put the cold ashes in a metal container with a lid.
Conclusion
By using these simple safety steps, you can ensure that you and your family will create many wonderful memories around your backyard fire pit.
Is Your Home Deck Safe for Your Family Activities? The July 5th during a holiday celebration, a deck collapse in Emerald Isle North Carolina injured 14 people. The porch deck collapsed in California killing six Irish students. These recent events prompted me to do a Google search on deck safety.
There are over 40 million decks in America. Many of these are over 20 years old. Homeowners themselves, often without deck permits or deck inspections, built many of them.
Your Atlanta deck is a great place for family summer activities. Is your deck safe for these activities?
Homeowners should check their decks in the spring and summer to make sure they are safe. Here are five things to look for regarding deck safety.
Check support posts and beams for rot, splitting or abnormal movement.
Closely check the attachment points between the deck and the house for wood rot, regularly spaced bolts or lag screws and that the flashing covers the ledger board. Rot was the cause of the California collapse.
Check all fasteners, bolts, joist hangers and other hardware for rust or corrosion.
Check all guards and rails to be sure they are sturdy and secure. Check for corroded nails the cause of the North Carolina deck collapse.
Use grills, heaters and outdoor fire pits with care. Regular inspections of your deck each year can help prevent a tragedy. By regular maintenance on your deck, you will protect your deck investment and save lives.
