You are at work. How do you know the kids are home from school… and are they doing their homework? Forest Security / alarm.com will show you how easy it is to add home video to your security system.
Security Tip From Forest: In reading this article, which is pretty advanced for the most of us, the most important thing to remember is: Set Up A Strong Password for every smart device you use. Who would think someone could hack into an electrical socket and steal email information??
A vulnerability in a popular brand of smart electrical sockets has been found that could allow hackers to spread malicious software to connected devices.
By Rodney Bosch · August 19, 2016
BUCHAREST, Romania— A smart electrical socket that could allow a hacker to turn power outlets into botnets, read your email, and even set your house on fire if you connect an appliance that could overheat? Those nightmarish scenarios are all possible, according to security researchers.
Researchers at cybersecurity software firm Bitdefender, based here, have identified a vulnerability in an undisclosed popular brand of smart electrical socket they say could be hijacked by an attacker, reports motherboard.vice.com.
The vulnerable socket plugs into a regular one, and allows users to schedule the activity of any dumb electronic device, with the help of a smartphone. The app is available for both iOS and Android platforms, and there have been over 10,000 downloads from Google Play alone, according to the article. Bitdefender contacted the smart socket vendor, which has said they will release a fix during Q3 2016.
Among the most destructive actions someone could perform is to wipe the existing software on the socket and to replace it with malicious one, researchers said.
“Up until now most IoT vulnerabilities could be exploited only in the proximity of the smart home they were serving, however, this flaw allows hackers to control devices over the Internet,” Alexandru Balan, chief security researcher at Bitdefender, told Motherboard. “This is a serious vulnerability, we could see botnets made up of these power outlets.”
Researchers who analyzed the power outlet have found several security issues, including a weak username and password combination that users are not alerted to change. Experts have also noticed that, during configuration, the app sends WiFi credentials in clear text over the network.
This man was attempting to burn down a Kentucky business. Sometimes justice takes care of itself…
By Stephen Sellner · August 15, 2016
Sometimes karma can come back to bite you. Other times it will light you on fire.
That was the case in Madisonville, Ky., when a man was seen on video surveillance attempting to burn down a business with a Molotov cocktail.
He threw the first cocktail successfully. It was the second one that … backfired.
Funds Raised for German Shepherd Stabbed in Buffalo Grove Home Invasion
A Buffalo Grove woman set up an online fund-raising campaign to help cover the costs of vet bills for a German Shepherd stabbed during a home a invasion last week in Buffalo Grove. Four family members were also stabbed during the attack and the GoFundMe page was setup to help alleviate some of the costs that family is now facing following the attack.
“In no way do we want to insinuate that the family pet is more important than the family members, (whose) hospital bills will be enough of a burden,” according to a message posted on the GoFundMe page. “We just want to help with the vet bills so they have one less thing to worry about.”
Piston, the family’s German Shepherd, underwent a costly surgery following the Aug. 8 attack at a home in the 400 block of St. Mary’s Parkway in Buffalo Grove on Aug. 10. Jacob William Beeman, 29, of Arkdale, Wisconsin, has been charged with attempted first-degree murder, home invasion and aggravated animal cruelty in connection with the home invasion.
His bail was set at $2 million on Friday.
In total, 215 people made donations over four days to raise $7,758 for the Buffalo Grove family to help pay for Piston’s vet bills. Piston has already undergone a surgery for injuries to the dog’s shoulder. That surgery is estimated to cost more than $6,000.
Police believe Beeman carried out the attack inside the home in Buffalo Grove shortly after midnight on Aug. 10, which left four family members, ranging in ages from 16 to 47, with stab wounds. The 47-year-old homeowner retrieved a gun from the home, and Beeman fled the scene, police said.
“The investigation revealed that Beeman believed there was a quantity of cash and drugs in the home,” Bethge said. Beeman told investigators another man told him there would be drugs and money in the house, according to prosecutors.
Victims in the attack told police a second person was reportedly outside the residence. Police are continuing to try to determine the identity of that second person.
“Buffalo Grove Police remain confident that this was not a random act and that there is no threat to the community,” Bethge said.
Four of the family members who were stabbed were taken to the hospital following the attack. Three were treated and released, and the 47-year-old homeowner, who suffered the most serious injuries, remained hospitalized as of Friday, according to police.
Time has come when we can no longer feel protected just by having a dog in the home. We need to protect our home an our pets with a monitored alarm system!
Suburban Photographer Offering Free Mini Photo Shoots for Police Families
(What a great way to support our local police officers)
The offer runs throughout the month of August.
By Scott Viau (Patch Staff) – August 10, 2016 12:16 pm ET
PLAINFIELD, IL — Plainfield photographer Melissa Carnaggio knows there’s more to a police officer than what most people see on the streets. They often have a family who loves them, and she wants people to see that side. That’s why she’s offering free mini photo shoots for police officers and their families throughout the month of August.
Carnaggio said the recent fatal shootings of multiple police officers across the country spurred her into action. Her attempt to give back began by buying food for an Oswego police officer, who pulled her over to thank her.
She then did a photo shoot of a police officer and his child. The pictures got such a great response online that she came up with the idea to offer free photos.
“They’ve got families that they’re going home to every night,” she said. “It’s more than what’s going on in the media. I think it’s really great what they’re doing.”
Carnaggio will send the officers high-resolution digital copies of the pictures and they can do whatever they want with them.
There’s no limit to how many photo shoots she’ll do, and if there’s multiple people from a department, she’s willing to go there. Otherwise, officers can go to her Plainfield home studio for the shoot.
“I wanted to create something positive,” she said. “I’m hoping that seeing pictures go up on social media with police and their kids will be uplifting.”
To schedule your photo shoot, contact Melissa at Melissacarnaggio@chicagolandphotography.com or give her a call at 630-965-0161.
Photos courtesy of Melissa Carnaggio
Thieves Entering Homes in DuPage County to Nab Car Keys, Steal Vehicles:
DuPage County has seen an increase in motor vehicle thefts by thieves who are also stealing unlocked vehicles with keys left inside.
ST CHARLES, IL – The DuPage County Sheriff’s Office is reminding residents to be extra vigilant in locking their vehicles following an increase motor vehicle thefts in DuPage County in the past three months.
The suspects are searching for unlocked vehicles with the keys to the vehicle left inside, according to a DuPage County Sheriff’s Office press release. In some instances, the thieves are going into unlocked vehicles and using the garage door opener to get into the garage and then into the home. Inside the residence, the thieves will search for vehicle keys and then steal the vehicle.
These vehicle thefts are occurring during the overnight hours. In addition to stealing the vehicles, the thieves are stealing purses and wallets and then using the identity and credit cards of the victims while traveling in their stolen vehicle, according to police.
Police said residents should never leave the keys to their vehicle inside and also said not to leave garage door openers inside of vehicles parked outside. Anyone who observes a criminal act in progress or someone acting suspiciously is asked to call 911 immediately and to not take any action that would place them in danger.
By Morgan Searles (Patch Staff) – August 8, 2016 9:47 am ET
Several witnessed the arrest Wednesday night, but is the “creeper ghost” even real?
By Tim Moran (Patch Staff) – July 29, 2016 4:47 pm ET
CHICAGO, IL – A Nest video taken at a Bucktown home gave thousands of people the creeps this week when it showed a burglar at the top of the staircase leering down at the homeowner and his girlfriend and he snook around quietly upstairs and stole a purse.
Residents of the Near North Side neighborhood were able to breathe a sigh of relief Wednesday night, however, when several witnessed a man who matched the burglars description being taken into custody.
But the Wicker Park Bucktown Insider’s Guide now reports that man, while arrested, was released without charges on Friday.
Gulp.
Police have not confirmed any charges against the suspect, who has been known to the public as the “creeper ghost.”
The reported arrest and corresponding lack of charges now has some wondering if this ghost exists at all.
Maybe the burglar was exactly what his alias claims. A ghost.
Members of the Bucktown Neighborhood Watch group on Facebook said the man shown in the video matches the description of other home burglaries reported in the area recently.
July and August are summer’s hottest months; tough on your air conditioning system, your comfort, and your electricity bill.
Inside your home, heat rises to the top floors and gets trapped, creating ‘hot zones’ far away from your thermostat. This makes it hard to keep your family comfortable throughout the day while still managing your energy costs.
Most homeowners simply blast their house with air conditioning until the hottest rooms are cool, creating large bills and enormous inefficiencies.
However, there is a smarter way. The Alarm.com Smart Thermostat, with remote temperature sensors, can deliver precision comfort to any room in your home in a way that keeps energy wastage down. Here’s how it works:
1: Place sensors in your priority rooms
Remote temperature sensors can be placed on the wall of any room. They give your Alarm.com Smart Thermostat the ability to read the temperature in that room, which also allows it to target the temperature in that room.
If you want your bedroom cooled to 72 degrees, for example, the thermostat will target your bedroom specifically, and cool your home until the bedroom’s temperature sensor registers a perfect 72 degrees.
It’s worth having remote temperature sensor in each of the main rooms your family spends the most time in, including the living room / family room and your master bedroom. If you have young children, place one in their bedroom or nursery.
Your Alarm.com dealer can show you the ideal location for a remote temperature sensor in any each room, where it will reflect the most accurate reading of the room’s temperature.
2: Create a precision comfort schedule
You can now have your thermostat target any room with a remote temperature sensor. You can change your target rooms manually, but the easiest way to do it is with a schedule.
Alarm.com makes it easy to create a schedule targeting different rooms at different times, based on your family’s routine.
For example, you can target the master bedroom between 10pm and 6am for a cool night, switching back to the main thermostat downstairs when it’s time to get up. When your kids arrive home from camp in the afternoon, you can have your living room sensor take over. At 10pm, the bedroom sensor will take over again.
In this way, your ideal temperature ‘follows’ you and your family around the home.
3: Balance smart comfort with smart savings
Precision comfort helps conserve energy by delivering just the amount of cooling that you need, and no more. In addition, however, there are many more ways to save energy with an Alarm.com Smart Thermostat.
Auto-setback monitors your doors and windows for potential energy waste: if you (or your kids) leave a door open, your thermostat will alert you, and automatically set back to minimize energy waste until you close it.
Geo-Services uses your smartphone’s location to set your thermostat to ‘savings’ mode automatically when you leave the house, and to ‘comfort’ mode when you’re on your way home. You leave a comfortable home, and return to a comfortable home, but consume less energy overall.
Finally, on the hottest days of all, our Extreme Temps feature gives you the option of automatically setting your thermostat to a degree or two higher when the temperature outside reaches a certain threshold. This subtly reduces the amount of energy your AC uses during the hottest hours of the day, without impacting your comfort too much.
Click Here : How the Thermostat Works Video
Buying a home security camera is a big decision. After all, there are very few things more important than safety. Unfortunately, the industry is also a bit untamed. Here are 8 common mistakes you should try to avoid.
Going cheap: Making a decision based upon price isn’t always advisable when it comes to home security. While the less expensive cameras may look the same as their more expensive brethren, they are often more difficult to set up, use, and include inferior software.
(Systems that are difficult to understand are usually not used. Or, when you do try to use them, you can’t get them to work properly)
No night vision: This may seem obvious but it is astonishing how many readers forget to check for this feature before buying a home security camera. For most purposes, having night vision will be critical to allow your security camera to record proper footage at night. Look for cameras that provide bright and clear night vision. Lower-end cameras will typically produce grainy video and allow you only a pixelated spotlight view when dark.
(A professionally installed Forest Security camera system always includes superior night vision. After all, what good is a camera if can only view it half of the time?)
Ignoring the subscription fee: Some companies try to sell a cheaper security camera upfront but require you to pay a hefty ongoing subscription fee for otherwise basic features. Always include the subscription fee when evaluating how expensive the security camera is. There are some companies that simply do not charge monthly fees and try to provide as much functionality as practical with the camera.
(Forest Security will design a custom system and payment method that best suits your needs. Video Camera Systems that use cloud video storage will always have a monthly fee. Network video storage systems can be leased where the monthly fee includes maintenance so you have no worries about costly repairs. We also have options to outright purchase the system)
Not questioning security and privacy: Those in the know, know that security is the biggest controversy in the connected home. And when it comes to security, not all security cameras are created equal. While most cameras are backed by either 128-bit or 228-bit encryption, it’s the little things that can leave a camera vulnerable. Make sure the camera you choose will allow you to set a unique and challenging password. Also, when shopping, you should look for cameras that are able to run some features locally, instead of relying completely on the cloud. Such cameras can keep sensitive data in your home, while sending minimal information into cyberspace.
(Forest Security will help you to make the best security choices for your home and family.)
Falling for the new and shiny: It’s happened to the best of us, a new and awesome Kickstarter launches and we’re all in line for the product du jour. Assuming that a company will support cloud and security updates forever is a risky gamble and buying a camera from an unestablished company increases that risk. Security cameras are increasingly high tech and new companies are popping up monthly. Before falling for the latest and greatest, dig deeper into the company behind the camera.
(All Forest Security Camera Systems are high quality and very reliable. We completely test all new technology before we use it in your home or business)
Not planning for the future: While you may find a solution that meets your needs today, don’t forget to investigate if the same camera will meet your future needs. For example, can you add an outdoor camera or even another indoor camera to protect your home if you move into a larger property? What if you decide to expand into smart home products? Will your camera work with other smart devices? What if you swap your iOS app for an Android? Does your security camera include an app for both platforms? Finally, don’t forget to find out if you can add additional users in the future. Believe it or not, some companies only support 1 user per camera, while others may charge for adding family members.
(All of Forest Security Camera Systems are expandable and will support as many users as required. We will ensure the system is viewable on your mobile devices and best of all, Forest Security is always available for service and technical assistance)
Assuming specs are specs: Comparing hardware specs will not help you select the best performing camera. Resolution, for example, is not the only determining factor that affects video quality. The quality of the picture can be greatly impacted by wide dynamic range, the camera’s frame rate, and the amount of IR LEDs, which will impact the camera’s ability to record at night. If you can’t find this information online, your best bet is to find sample footage shared by other owners. While an individual’s bandwidth may impact their camera experience, it is still a good way to see how a camera really performs.
(Let the Forest Specialists configure the best camera solution for your requirement. Whether you need a wide angle view or long camera range, Forest will configure the correct camera solution)
Not working through the worst case scenario: When shopping for a camera, it’s easy to get caught up in the allure of marketing. Sure, free clip storage sounds great, but what if a clip is only 15 seconds long? Is that really sufficient video evidence? And 24 hour continuous recording sounds phenomenal, but what happens when you need to sift through 24 hours of footage in order to find one crucial moment? It’s painstaking. When buying a camera, don’t forget that the purpose is to protect your home and to provide evidence to the authorities if ever, heaven forbid, evidence is needed.
(Remember, Forest Security configures the right system for your security needs. We professionally install and set up your system and we are always available in the future if you have any questions or problems.)
By: Janet Miller / THE BLOG
(By: Forest Security)
Protect Your Property with a Home Security Audit
(& Forest Security)
A home security audit is the best way to identify weak points in your physical security. Take the time to evaluate your home not from an aesthetic point of view, but from that of a criminal. Look for ways you could break into your home if you locked your keys inside. Then consider how much further someone would be willing to go to get inside if they didn’t care about damaging the house.
Inspect the Exterior
Walk outside and thoroughly examine the exterior of your home, including entrances, windows, and the surrounding physical area. Prune shrubs and trees leading up to the house, and those around windows and doors, closely enough to make it impossible for someone to conceal themselves. House numbers need to be clearly displayed and easily visible from the road to assist emergency responders in locating the home in case of an emergency.
(Install outdoor lighting around perimeter of your home – Burglars don’t like to work under spotlights. Forest can install outdoor video cameras since burglars also don’t like to be caught on camera)
Check Your Doors
All doors should be of a solid material and locked with a deadbolt of at least one inch. One of the newest innovations to come into the home security market are smart locks. These devices allow your smartphone to become a digital key that unlocks a deadbolt. This can boost your security by making it quicker and easier for you to enter your home. A digital monitoring system for your doors allows you to see who is at your door whether you’re there or not.
(Forest can easily add smart lock control to your security system. Our Video Doorbell integrates with security cameras and your Forest Security System)
Watch Your Windows
Windows are an easy target for thieves wanting to gain entrance to a home. They are far easier to open or break, and are typically not monitored as closely. To make your windows more secure it is essential to make sure they are always locked, even if they are partially opened. Never leave windows open when the family is away from the house, and ensure the exterior space around them is adequately illuminated. As an additional security precaution, many home security companies will add motion sensors to windows to alert residents if they are tampered with. There are also numerous options available for private installation.
(All Forest Security systems include an interior motion detector for layered protection. We also offer individual window contacts, bypass window contacts and glassbreak sensors)
Don’t Forget the Garage
The garage is an often overlooked exterior entrance, especially if people use the space for storage instead of for parking. It’s important that you reinforce the garage door itself to make access to the area more difficult. Garage door armor is a lot like adding a deadbolt to the biggest entrance to your home. However, the secondary point of entry is the door between the house and the garage. It should be as sturdy as the other exterior doors, and also fitted with a deadbolt.
(This is the favored door to break in through. It is hidden from neighbors and many times does not have a deadbolt installed. Forest Security always puts a security door contact on this door. You can also have a remote garage door tied into your security system which alerts you when your overhead odor is opened)
Bedrooms
Most people store their most valuable items in their bedrooms, which makes it an ideal location for a safe. When choosing a safe look for one that would be difficult to move, ideally more than 100 lbs. It is easy to take smaller safes and open them in a more leisurely setting. If the safe has to be opened before the criminals are able to leave, it is possible they won’t bother and will instead move on to more easily accessible items. Take the time to secure all items of value, including jewelry, heirlooms, and firearms. This may require more than one safe, but the investment is worth it as a deterrent and as a safety measure.
(Door contacts can be installed on safes to alert you when the safe door is opened)
High Tech
Technology is rapidly changing home security. Making your home as secure as possible has become something tech savvy people can do for a fraction of the cost of working with a home security service. You can watch what is going on in your home from your smartphone. The variety and functionality of devices is expanding at a rapid rate and each new iteration makes it easier than ever to secure your home. While performing your home security audit, consider the ways high tech options might make your life easier and your home safer.
Completing a home security audit will force you to think of the ways in which you and your family are vulnerable. Many people avoid doing this because it is scary to think about someone else invading your space in such a way. Unfortunately, according to the FBI, there is a burglary in the United States about every 15 seconds. Take the time to make your house as secure as possible, and avoid becoming a statistic.
(Forest Security will install a new wireless home security system at NO COST. The low monthly fee starts at only $39.95 which includes smartphone access, color touch screen control, door protection, an interior motion detector, a Keyfob remote with a panic button and Complete Peace of Mind!)
By: Lucinda Watrous – (The Huffington Post – 05/18/2016 03:05 pm 15:05:43 | Updated May 18, 2016)
Forest Security, the only name you need to know for your home security!
Protecting You Is Our Only Business!
