As a senior myself, I have experienced the challenges of work, raising my family, while tending to the needs of my elderly Mom who wanted to stay in the comfort of her home. Daily calls, worrying about dangers of her cooking, navigating through her home, stairs, walking the dog to name a few of the concerns I dealt with daily. I understand, of the 34.2 million unpaid caregivers, 95% are family members. So, when my company rolled out a new product we refer to as “Solutions for Seniors”, I fell in love with it.

This product uses an “automated Intelligence” to determine trends & behaviors during a normal day. It can include, personal emergencies, daily routine alerts with unexpected activity alerts to adult children and can be combined with intrusion detection, fire detection & home automation. Best of all, caregivers and family can stay connected with their loved ones via an easy-to-use App and look in on them to converse via the “Wellcam” with built-in intercom.

A secure, cost-effective 24/7 safety net for those times when family or caregivers are not there. We all have a friend, relative, colleague or neighbor in this situation. Why not reach out to me and let me put my 38 years of experience to help families stay connected and look back with NO REGRETS? I never want to hear “I had no idea something like this was available.

Reach out to me via phone 330-233-4727 or email rwcarnahan@vectorsecurity.com for more information.

The spread of novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) across the country has caused life, as we know it, to halt. Many Americans are taking shelter in their homes, as schools and businesses close in an attempt to flatten the curve.

With schedules and routines getting upended, it’s important to keep home and personal security at the forefront. Read on for four ways that home security equipment can help you adjust amidst COVID-19 concerns.

1. Ensure Online Deliveries are Secure

With the recommendation to stay home, more people are turning to online delivery services for household items, basic necessities, baby supplies and food. Amazon announced it plans to hire 100,000 in the U.S. to help meet an unprecedented surge in orders, and grocery delivery apps are seeing record downloads.

This opens the door for “porch pirates” who could see a peak in package deliveries as an opportunity for personal gain. A doorbell camera can protect your home deliveries by allowing you to keep an eye on packages, deter thieves and capture evidence should a robber strike.

Using the speaker system of the doorbell camera, you can also communicate with delivery drivers, while still practicing social distancing. Provide instructions on where to leave the package or simply exchange a few pleasantries from the safety of your home.

2. Keep an Eye on the Elderly, or Children, Remotely

Those over the age of 60 are most at risk for COVID-19 complications, and there’s a possibility for asymptomatic carriers to spread the virus unknowingly. For caregivers, this presents a unique challenge: How do you ensure that parents or grandparents are safe in their homes, while also keeping distance?

In addition to the good old telephone, security equipment can help in two ways:

1. Video surveillance cameras allow you to check in throughout the day to ensure your loved one hasn’t fallen or gotten injured. They also allow you to “see” the individual in a time when it might not be safe to visit face-to-face.
2. Smart locks permit you to let yourself into their home, making it easy to drop off necessities like food, medicine and household products.

Likewise, if you work outside of the home and have children whose schools are closed, video surveillance cameras can help you check in on them.

3. Work From Home Safely

In response to government recommendations, many businesses are turning toward remote work as a way to continue operations, while keeping their employees safe. However, teleworking introduces its own set of cyber security risks.

Experts note that hackers are capitalizing on more remote workers to prey on individuals and companies working over less secure network connections.

Here are some tips for employees as they set up shop to work remote:

• Turn on your wireless router’s encryption setting; WPA2 is preferred.
• Change default passwords for your service set identifier (SSID), IP and router. Make sure each are unique, and difficult to crack. We recommend a complicated strand of numbers, letters and characters.
• Install antivirus, anti-spyware and firewall software for additional protection.
• Be wary of emails and content from unknown sources, so you don’t fall victim to a phishing scheme. [Note, there are already known reports of hackers sending fake, phishing emails that appear to come from the World Health Organization (WHO) or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).]

4. Make Life More Comfortable at Home

Life around us is being inconvenienced in a myriad of ways—but you can control your home environment. With schools and businesses closing, and more individuals bunkering down at home, you might as well make it as comfortable as possible.

Here’s some ideas on how you can put home automation to use:

• Set or adjust smart light and thermostat schedules to align with your new schedule of being home more frequently.
• Use video surveillance equipment to keep watch of children playing in the other room, the basement or the backyard—perhaps while you attempt a conference call in peace.
• Integrate voice control to lock your doors, check the status of your security system, control your lights or TV, or close your garage.

I Am Here if You Need Help

Have a question related to home or personal security? Contact Rick for help. Stay safe, and healthy!

The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to defending civil liberties in the digital world studied the Ring Doorbell application. In their research they found the application to be filled with third-party trackers. Before you get a Ring, or if you have a ring, you should read their report; "Ring Doorbell App Packed with Third-Party Trackers". Protect your family, yourself and your data.

If you would like a security camera system which allows you to monitor your home remotely and does not contain third-party tracking please contact Rick

Planning is key to surviving a fire. We all hope it will not happen to us. The best key to surviving a home fire is planning. Schools have and practice fire drills, every family should too. This article contains excellent Family Fire Safety Tips published by the National Safety Council. Planning makes a difference when seconds count.

Another great article on Family Escape Planning from National Fire Protection Association includes great ideas about how to plan your escape route and how you and your family can best survive a home fire.

Want help with your escape plan? The National Safety Council put out this article to help you Plan Your Family Fire Escape.

To review how safe your home is check out the Home Fire Safety: Checklist published by the National Safety Council

Winter is a time when house fires are most common. Check out our article on Home Fire Prevention