Minimising Alarm security system weak points
Determined criminals can smash the rear sliding glass door of a property in a few seconds, walk through the shattered safety glass into the house. While the alarm is going off they quickly grab and out within minutes before security/police can arrive.
Any ideas on ways to improve security to minimise their exposure time to precious belongings?
I was recommended flush mount internal sirens rather than top hat ones as a screwdriver pushed hard in the centre damages them and stops the ear piercing 110dB sound in the house. Another weak point is the alarm panel, turn off the power and disconnect the battery and no internal or external sounder. This could be done in 20 seconds with the right tools. Has anyone fortified theses or recommend any other improvements?
Look forward to your comments.
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Determined Criminals can steal a car and ram it into your house and get in.
If they want to get in they will, all we can do is try and make it hard for them.
Security Grills could be an option.
A dog.
Also if you have alot of precious belongings maybe invest in a safe.
Thanks Hugh, yes determined criminals take a high level of risk and getting in to any property isn't too difficult by a number of means..
I am just thinking when they are in, making their life difficult so they are there a few seconds rather than a few minutes.
Has anyone does an install with multiple internal sounders?
A safe sounds a good idea for items that don't get used often.
Last edited by matt_in_perth; 26-09-12 at 08:57 PM.
You specifically mentioned rear of property, so I would assume no public access. With this in mind external detection in that area could be a good option, maybe something like a Takex MS110 or the like.
In regards to killing the panel add a satellite siren, this has its own internal battery & requires a signal from the panel to NOT go into alarm
Do not use standard internal top hats/ flush mounts. Use something like a TK428 dual screamer, 124dB @ 1m.
Early detection is the first thing. The right perimeter protection devices will activate the system before they've even gained entry. This is often enough to send would be crooks packing. Devices such as Sentrol Shatter point are ideal for sliding doors, containing a break glass detector, shock sensor and reed switch all in one. If you want to detect them before that, the E-Shield from Hills offers a great solution for covering several windows or protecting a walk way etc. The units come in several size each containing a varying number of PE Beams depending on the size. Or there's external motion sensors.Originally Posted by matt_in_perth
Regarding the sirens, internal sirens yes, recessed are an alternative but most installers only ever install one per home. Multiple internal sirens make it very unpleasant to be inside and make it harder for the crooks to shut the thing up. As for external sirens, again there's no harm in having multiple units. If you're worried about cables being cut etc, look to satellite sirens. Even if they manage to cut cables and rip the thing off the wall it's still going to be a challenge to shut it up. They're a pain to install, and a pain to service but equally as painful for the crooks.
As for getting access to your panel within 20 seconds, if it's installed in a cupboard out of the way, they have to first of all find it, get rid of the power and then attempt to either open it or pull it off the wall. There are much easier ways to get around your panel than bothering with finding it. However, this is where multi-path monitoring services come in. If your phone line is cut, and the system is compromised, a correctly designed an implemented system will ensure enough communications get out before the entire system goes down. Even if the system does go down, your satellite sirens will make a enough noise to put the crims on edge.
At the end of the day, it's highly unlikely (unless you're doing something to attract the attention of the underworld or you make it openly known that you have firearms) that anyone is going to bother going to such lengths to break in to the average home. If you're that concerned, brick up all your windows and enter through a secret tunnel.
AdRock (26-09-12),matt_in_perth (26-09-12)
Thanks for your comments guys:-
TK428 just read from the spec- 126bB - that is loud.
Drift, excellent information thanks
Last edited by matt_in_perth; 26-09-12 at 09:45 PM.
Security is different for each individuals needs and comfort. That being said, I will try not to go into too much detail.
A burglar alarm, by design, is a device that detects intrusion and should be a piece of your whole security plan.
People who are concerned about security should look at it as an onion. Onions have layers and the burglar alarm should be the very last, if not second last layer of defense.
Your security layers should do the following at a minimum.
Deter, Delay, Detect and Deny.
Deterrence can be accomplished by a number of things such as;
Visible burglar alarms and/or signage. Security lighting and good lighting in recessed areas and doorways. Trees and shrubs can make good hiding places, be sure to minimise them around doorways and windows. Don't leave tools, ladders etc lying around the house as these make their job easier.
Delaying would be intruders plays a large part in your whole security plan. Fencing your property can delay both entry and exit. Fortifying locks on doors and windows will also delay intrusion, make use of deadlocks. Security screens. You could also look at perimeter protection such as PE beams, outdoor motion sensors and CCTV. If the alarm has gone off while they are in your yard, chances are they will high-tail it out before attempting to breach the doors or windows.
Detection is self explanatory, the use of a burglar alarm will accomplish this. So will a large dog. Technology has advanced, nowadays you can have CCTV images sent to a monitoring center for video verification. This adds another dimension to the traditional burglar alarm. As mentioned earlier, perimeter detection devices are available. Furthermore to the ones mentioned, there are reed switches for doors and windows as well as shock/vibration sensors for when someone smashes a glass door or window.
Detection is useless unless someone is alerted. An analogy I like to use for unmonitored premises' is the philosophical thought experiment "If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?"
The same goes for your alarm, if it is blaring and no one knows about it, it is as good as not even being installed.
Denial. This should be the final layer of your onion. If all the previous layers have been breached then you'd want to make sure that they leave with nothing of value. Anything of value should be locked away. The simplest of ways to accomplish this is to have a safe in your home. Also locking devices such as the ones used in most office places for laptops, computers and other high value items that are easily lifted. Isn't your home PC, TV etc not as important?
Last edited by intelliGEORGE; 26-09-12 at 09:52 PM.
AdRock (27-09-12),matt_in_perth (27-09-12),tonkanick (17-12-12),TTENNEB (27-09-12)
Just to throw it out there a good secondhand safe ie combo and 750kg is about $2,000 delivered. The average crook isn't going to have the vehicle/means/crew to take that away.
My safe has money, jewellery and a Jason Akermanis signed photo in it.
Who would want to steal an Akermanis signed picture ??.
downunderdan (27-09-12),intelliGEORGE (27-09-12),sirporky (28-09-12),Tastech (27-09-12)
Jason Akermanis
itscrowtime (27-09-12),Ratty (27-09-12)
What George said.
This isn't about use of technology. It is about fundamental security principles. Concentrate on the latter and the particular gear required will identify itself.
Regarding the disabling of panels, yes polled pathways are good at identifying this, but only if the poll rate is suitably high. There's no point finding out 1hr later that the panel has been attacked as the Akermanis poster will already be on eBay with a starting price of three cents and zero bids. Australian Standards and best practice mandate that the alarm panel should be in a secure area with no delay, such that any intrusion will allow the alarm to send a signal to a central monitoring station before the intruder has a chance to rip it off the wall. That is you should allow for at the very minimum, a 10-15 second "Delay" after detection and before the crook can get to it. In my opinion, the crazy-high poll rates I see bandied around are 97% marketing and 3% security with big false alarm potential.
Every bit of hardware has a certain delay associated to it. For example, 8ft chain-wire fence might represent a 10 second delay. A lightweight door might be 2 seconds, heavyweight multi-locked door might be 90 seconds. Security laminated glass might be 5 minutes. Double brick, maybe 10 minutes against hand-tools. Our reinforced concrete and steel lined monitoring centre, don't ask!
Every time you see a control panel mounted right inside the front door of a shop you can be sure the person installing it had no understanding of security. Ye olde Ness 5000 with the panel mounted keypad used to encourage exactly this bad habit. These days, some all in one systems continue the trend. If the premises only had a single room, the best option might be a high poll-rate but unfortunately these are usually the places looking to spend the least possible money. A workaround is to have no entry delay at all and mount the keypad externally or use a keyfob (preferably one which requires a PIN or some authentication) to buy yourself that 10 seconds for the panel to call for help.
Don't kid yourself. All you'd need to remove that safe is a crowbar to lever it up so you can slide a pallet-jack or some steel pipes underneath it as rollers. Plop it on the back of your 1 tonne ute and that safe is yours. Safes must be bolted down to prevent this, even if they're hella-heavy.
Unfortunately your average residence has about five seconds delay being the time it takes Rob to smash a pane of glass. Many alarm installers happily put in an electronic system which will ultimately amount to little more than one day telling the homeowner "time to buy new stuff". Instead, security service providers should be encouraging customers to consider overall security hardware.
Last edited by downunderdan; 27-09-12 at 11:10 AM.
[QUOTE=downunderdan;515735]What George said.
Don't kid yourself. All you'd need to remove that safe is a crowbar to lever it up so you can slide a pallet-jack or some steel pipes underneath it as rollers. Plop it on the back of your 1 tonne ute and that safe is yours. Safes must be bolted down to prevent this, even if they're hella-heavy.
QUOTE]
Thanks for that, Akermanis is now in a safe deposit box at the bank.
You are right, what also scares me, is that if you or the other alarm experts turn thieves, what hope do we have.
We actually moved a 2 tonn safe a few months ago with a huge crow bar and about 200 golf balls, the golf balls gave us full mobility, when my old boss came with the golf balls, I thought they would be crushed, but they withstood the weight of the safe.
My point with the safe is, it's going to take them some time to either move it or attempt to break into it. THe average thief isn't going to waste all that time, as with the alarm going off, I'm hoping he ain't going to stay too long.
You could say the same about Counter-Terrorism experts, homicide detectives etc, etc.
If an 'alarm expert' can make you think that way, then you know you have the right alarm person. Security requires a particular mindset which is essential for success.
For example; Good engineering involves thinking about how things can be made to work. The security mindset involves thinking about how things can be made to fail.
You need to think like a criminal. If you don't see the world the way they do, you'll never notice most security problems.
Hound-Dog (27-09-12)
The reality is nothing is safe, if you have it someone can steal it.
Unfortunately businesses generally go for the cheaper option expecting the world.
They have no idea of the quality of the job until things turn to sh%t then want to complain about it.
Look at older posts of pictures people have posted of crappy work.
As per the previous comments on this thread, Security is a layered approach to suit an application. Then it doesnt matter who the perpetrator is they will be detected in some respect.
There is a product called (similar to) "The Cloak". It is a 'smoke' that fills the room/house and can be connected to movement detectors. On activation, a cloak of smoke pours into the room and disorients burglars to the point where their efforts are concentrated into getting out and not into getting their hands on your gear. May be worth a look.
Although a safe is a great place for your valuables, I'm sure that items such as the signed picture of Jason are up on your wall for all to enjoy
Keep the bastards out!
THe ultimate goal is to not allow the perps to enter the premises, and to sound an alert if they try. Slow their entry down, and they'll usually look for a 'softer' target. This is the best outcome for the customer. Everyone benefits.
Another level of security, dummy goods. Assuming that they have gotten past the Boganvillia surrounding all outer perimeters, and security lights/doors, set off the internal alarm system and cannot locate/disable alarm panel and or screamers, the first things that they will grab are, fake wallet with fake credit cards, and small cash. broken phone "charging", and broken laptop. All placed in typical areas and are an easy/quick grab for burglars looking to get in and out quick for a large return. All faulty phones and laptops can be found on the internet for a respectively miniscule amount. and all are difficult to immediately detect that they are not working.
Only problem is, have to have this junk lying around all the time.
I like it, I just don't want to have to start a thread in the BST For Sale Smoked damaged Jason Akermanis Signed Picture.There is a product called (similar to) "The Cloak". It is a 'smoke' that fills the room/house and can be connected to movement detectors. On activation, a cloak of smoke pours into the room and disorients burglars to the point where their efforts are concentrated into getting out and not into getting their hands on your gear. May be worth a look.
Although a safe is a great place for your valuables, I'm sure that items such as the signed picture of Jason are up on your wall for all to enjoy
There is nothing which says "get out of my house" quite like the sound of a shotgun being racked in the upstairs bedroom.
Unfortunately criminals in this country aren't used to hearing that sound, so home invasions are a growing trend.
It's called the Smoke Cloak, a number of Sydney service stations have them fitted. It's a non-toxic smoke similar to those used in nightclubs.
The principle behind the device is to prevent theft after breach. They can't steal what they can't see.
This is the demo video for the smoke cloak in operation at a 50000sqf warehouse. As you can see it fills the area quite quickly. Only downside, is it takes forever to clear (especially service stations with only one entry and no windows) unless of course you have an extraction unit installed.
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