How to Keep Your Home Secure With Technology

A person’s home should be their castle—safe, secure, and protected from all the risks of modern life.

Fortunately, with a little assistance from technology, you can keep your home, your belongings, and your family from many of those potential dangers. Here are TK ways you can use technology to make your home a safer place for those you love as well as yourself, your pets, and your property. 

Install Smart Carbon Monoxide Alarms and Smoke Detectors

Two of the biggest threats to your home—fire and carbon monoxide leaks—can endanger your home faster than you can imagine. Keep your family safe by installing smart carbon monoxide alarms and smoke detectors, which can alert you through notifications to your smartphone or other devices. That way, even if you aren’t home, you’ll be able to respond to the situation promptly. As with any carbon monoxide or smoke detector, you’ll need to make sure the devices are properly installed and maintained; test them regularly to ensure they’re working. 

Add a Comprehensive Smart Security System

Beef up your home security with a comprehensive security system. Then make it even more powerful by choosing a smart security system. With sensors to detect motion, sound, and more, connected to video cameras, sensors, and a network that keeps you informed and in control, these systems will help you keep an eye out on your property and your family even when you’re not there yourself. Double-check your audio and video placement to ensure you’ve got adequate coverage of all possible points of access. 

Check Your Outdoor Lighting

It might not be the first thing you think of when you think about “home safety,” but with almost 200,000 deaths occurring from home-based accidents, it’s important to make sure residents and guests alike can see where they’re going and avoid physical obstacles. A well-lit exterior area and pathway to your front door will also help deter any potential bad actors from attempting to gain unauthorized access. 

Upgrade Your Locks

Technology can also improve physical safety by upgrading the locks on your windows and doors. Deadbolt locks for exterior doors will help reinforce weak points that might be vulnerable to intrusion. You can take that security one step further by switching out traditional locks for smart locks. These provide added convenience and safety by allowing you to remotely unlock them with a smartphone app. Some models will even let you establish temporary access codes, useful for visiting guests, service professionals, or even real estate agents if you decide to sell your home.

Add a Video Doorbell Camera

Rising in popularity to the point they’re practically ubiquitous, video doorbells give you an unparalleled view of a particularly vulnerable location: your front door. With the right model, you can see what’s outside, whether you’re at home, at work, or on vacation, and even communicate with people there. You’ll also have a visual record of anything that approaches your entrance, which might come in handy if you should spot any suspicious or unsavory activity. 

Fool Bad Actors

One of the best ways to deter intruders when you’re away from home is to create the illusion that you’re at home. Smart home tech can help you create that illusion, by automating lights and appliances in your home. With timers and smart plugs, you can control your television, a radio, and the lights inside your home to discourage criminals from attempting to gain entry. 

Keep Tabs on Your Property and Kids

Extend your zone of protection to individual items of particular value using GPS trackers such as Apple AirTags or similar devices. They’re relatively inexpensive and can be purchased in packs of four to protect your cars, laptops, tablets, and bikes—even to pets that are prone to wander. Use geofencing technology to establish an invisible boundary around your property, then you can receive notifications if anything (or anyone) goes through it. 

Let Technology Keep You Safe

Whether you plan to stay in your home for years to come or envision selling it quickly, a safer home is always a happier one. With the judicious use of current technology, you can radically improve the safety and security of your home and everyone in it. Don’t forget to also cultivate good safety habits such as keeping your doors and windows locked, being cautious about revealing personal information, and never answering your door without knowing who’s there.