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Ask Slashdot: Inexpensive SOHO Crime Deterrence and Monitoring?
First time accepted submitter trellz writes "My sister and brother-in-law are self employed, and run a small business with a storefront. It was broken into about a year ago, and since then they have reinforced physical security; bars on the doors and windows, better locks, etc. Unfortunately, their store was broken into and vandalized again last week, in spite of the added security measures. Being technically savvy, I'm trying to come up with inexpensive ways to add deterrence, monitoring, and alerting to their business. They run an extremely lean lifestyle and profit margin, so the solution needs to be almost free. They do have an internet connection at the store, so motion detection, web cameras, Arduino devices, and the like are certainly an option. Ideally I would like a rock-solid alerting method. Something like an email or text to a laptop at home, or a dedicated prepaid phone, but without the pitfalls of such a solution (i.e. random wrong numbers, solicitors, email spam, etc). I'd also prefer not to poke holes in their firewall at the shop if at all possible. I was considering an email with some sort of long code or hash in the body, and then could white list that on the receiving end to key off of. The goal is to never have a false alarm based on the transmission/reception method." What advice, beyond ZoneMinder?
Bars on the doors and windows suggests someone was pretty aggressive about getting in there - or your physical security upgrades are just insufficient. If people can still get in, and if what they take is relatively lightweight, a sophisticated alarm isn't really going to help you all that much compared to just something which makes a lot of noise.
How about a specific subject line in the email, and if the email doesn't have it, it gets filtered into the trash?
Personally I'd rather have my idiots at home glued to the TV than out doing idiotic things
Sadly enough, as in IT security, I'd wager that compliance with industry best practices is more important (from the underwriter's perspective) than actual efficacy -- that is, while it would cost more up-front, a contract with a security provider may result in easier access to (potentially mandatory) insurance.
What about getting a dog? It's both a deterrent and an alarm.
The software is available for surveillance already. You can setup a threshold of changed pixels in a time window (outside of business hours) and if it is exceeded it sends an e-mail, etc. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motion_(surveillance_software)
Have a good firearm. Kill them. It works very well.
Never used the feature myself, but I do own an old DS-207 nas box which is rock solid.
It will send out an email if the attached cameras detect motion.
Interface with the nas software is pretty user friendly.
I am sure there are other nas boxes from other companies that have similar features.
Just figured I'd throw this out there.
We know you said,
They run an extremely lean lifestyle and profit margin, so the solution needs to be almost free.
but it's pretty clear that you meant,
They sell wearable handicrafts made from soft-drink tins and yarn, and spend all the money on weed, so don't bother offering any solution that isn't basically free.
We're all grown-ups here, no need to soft-pedal for Grandma or whatever.
1. Something like this
http://www.chinavasion.com/china/wholesale/Surveillance_Security/Security_Gadgets/Motion_Detection_Camera-GSM_Mini_Camera
2. With another something like this
http://www.chinavasion.com/china/wholesale/IP_Cameras/Outdoor_IP_Cameras/IP_Security_Camera_720P_HD_Dual_IR_Array/
It will give you MMS, recording in 720p, and ability to yell at them in korean to get out of your store.
I put in a small Revo DVR unit with webcams last year for a small business. It was $800 and I think it was a lot of bang for the buck. It had alarm inputs, whick are simple enough that if you're on a budget you could set up on entryways. The cameras were motion detecters, IR, etc. I definitely recommend it.
----- obSig
Are they going to run to the shop, guns in hand to fend off the intruders? What is police response time to the area? How long did it take the criminals to clean the place out?
For deterrent, how about a group of concealed speakers that are triggered by movement inside the store (i.e., broken IR beam across doors and windows, etc.). The speakers play a warning tone at 135dB, a very brief message that it's about to get much louder, and then let it just get louder and louder. Even with hearing protection, I don't think a thief is going to be able to burgle your store while a variety of discordant tones plays at 150dB, increasing to 180dB, then maybe on up to about 220dB. I think at around "louder than a rocket launchpad" even a deaf thief will notice.
You might end up with a noise complaint though, and if you're in California, you may have to worry about the thief (or thieves) suing you for damaging their hearing.
They run an extremely lean lifestyle and profit margin, so the solution needs to be almost free.
Doing nothing has a cost too... possibly more break-ins = more lost profit. There is a potentially high risk cost of doing nothing; depending on what it is, they might be able to budget a lot of money, and the net cost could be zero: assuming the break ins are actually causing damage and hurting their business revenue.
The idea that you run a business, and you are not willing to spend any money on security is absolutely ridiculous. You should be willing to spend an appropriate amount of money to manage the risk.
The most important mitigation is probably to have insurance, but again... the premium may increase, the more breakins.
This may be a matter that a security consulting firm should be hired to look at.
Hidden cameras with a DVR may be useful to help catch the perps.... however, there is a problem: this is only useful, if responders become aware of the breakin and get there, before the thief can locate the DVR associated with the cameras and destroy it.
Visible cameras, may be used as a deterrent; however, they are subject to vandalism.
One of the best deterrents which should not be overlooked is a professionally Monitored security alarm system with External sounders, Internal motion detectors, Door sensors, Glass break detectors, perimeter coverage, and an alarm loop and cellular backup to a central monitoring station, that will dispatch authorities in the event of an alarm.
Buy business insurance, do what the insurance adjuster wants you to do, and don't do anything more.
If you don't have or can't afford business insurance, then you should question whether your business is viable or not, especially if a poorly timed robbery can put you under.
A free downloadable software package for Synology NAS units. I believe that if you use more than one camera there is a license for each additional one. Does support motion sensing, email/text/Skype alerts. http://www.synology.com/dsm/dsm_app.php?lang=us
Get some chloroform or other substance that can knock someone out, and tie it into your motion detection system. If anyone breaks in they'll be knocked unconscious and you can get the police in to arrest them. Or, since it's unlikely the burglars let anyone know what they were doing, nobody will miss them...
email can get hung up for a variety of reasons and take hours or days.
Hi, what you need is webcamd for a low powered machine with a cheap USB webcam (best to check the chipset compatibility before buying, just in case).
There'll be a bit of manual page reading, setting the motion detection thresholds and areas, configuring it to start on boot, archive/FTP images taken, add timestamps to the images, etc, and writing the scripts that will get run when motion is detected, but it'll be cheap, customizable and it'll work.
I've used this setup in a local maritime simulator where there was a breakin attempt (lots of projectors and electronics naturally), and they wanted a bit of extra security on the cheap.
HTH,
// MD_Update(&m,buf,j);
This does nothing. But it completely stops break-ins and it's cheap.
https://spygear4u.com/ds_proddetail.asp?prod=GS-LS-131
Watch the videos you can find of it around. It's very scary. Does nothing, of course, but it's VERY scary. And that will keep your family's store safe.
You don't say where you are, in some jurisdictions you must be certified to install security solutions for commercial premises/purposes and it must be to code.
Our shop is low margin also. I installed an IP camera with a battery backup that feeds a netbook that records the camera feed and save it for ten days. The cost is cheap and it will help cops catch the purp. A couple of dummy camera along with one real one will scare off just about any crook.
that device is an absolute cack
which will most likely work simply due to the unknown risk factor
back it up with some visible security cameras to cover key areas and back those up with hidden cameras, make sure you've got a UPS and internet backup on the files and you should be all good
If they cannot afford the less than $100/month for this service they're not going to be in business long since they obviously aren't turning a profit.
Have a monitored alarm put in.
Even if you managed to cobble something together and if gave you beautiful pictures of the perp it would still be too late. Chances are you wouldn't be able to alert the cops fast enough to get them to stop the guy and the damage to the property and the stolen goods are not likely to be recovered. In contrast a professional system would be up there and visible (bell boxes on walls, stickers in windows etc) AND there is a chance that ADT calling the cops might get a patrol car there fast enough to catch the guy.
Putting someone in jail doesn't fix busted doors and windows. A deterrent that makes someone look for easier pickings might prevent property damage.
Here's what they need:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnH95uzQPOo
It's both cheap and effective (apparently).
At my repair shop, I have a $1 contact-break alarm system on my back door. As soon as it goes off, 100 dB alarm in your face and it's rather difficult to disable without knowing how it works. Not many people would say "well, that alarm is blasting but let's keep robbing it." They just run.
I can't believe modern people are still stupider than medieval people. This is pure castle theory. You don't build tons and tons and tons of defense like walls and locks and moats and then just leave it. Persistent threats will find a way in. What did rich people and kings do? Set traps. Make it look somewhat secure but then oops, you stepped on the wrong rock. Now there's spikes in your face. Or you pick a lock on the treasure chest and it released poison gas because the treasure chest is actually backwards and the real lock is on the back.
Bars on the windows are nothing. They'll just bring a crow bar. The "low hanging fruit" theory about which stores get robbed do not apply here. But add traps aka window break alarms and make sure the "Protected by alarms" and red blinking lights are showing and a thief would have no idea what trap they're about to fall into and would stay away.
Seriously, how is anybody supposed to know how their system is deficient or how to prevent further break.ins without knowing the merchandise which is attracting robbers and how their system was compromised?
Don't complain about syntax, grammar, or spelling. There is no.hell like input on android.
Just get this: http://www.axis.com/products/m10_series/video/index.htm
... then just completely halfass it. Don't bother putting any real equipment in.
Just head over to ebay and buy some ADT window decals and someone's old busted keypad to hang on the wall. Get one that just has LEDs, not a screen, and wire up some batteries to light the Power and Ready lights.
That will be more of a deterrent than some half-baked cobbled-up do it yourself system.
That said, if it's really something they're concerned about, they should just get a real security system installed and monitored. It's not that expensive - getting the hardware put in can add up, but if all you need is a couple of doors and a glass break detector, it's not too bad - and the monitoring for a small business won't be that much. And having a real, properly installed, permit on file alarm system will generally get you a discount on insurance.
Alarm systems won't keep a place from being broken into, and they won't get the police there fast enough to catch someone when it is, in general. But I do strongly recommend having one because you can get a monitored smoke detector and THAT can be a big help getting the fire department there fast enough to do something.
Breaking crews are highly specialized, know how to enter almost any place and ransack it for valuables in impressively short time.
Get a safe, preferably something hard-installed or bulky and impossible to carry - this will protect what's in the safe reliably (think: irreplaceables), as it cannot be opened in the timeframe of a typical robbery or carried off.
Other than that, back up all your business data twice in the evening, one onto an encrypted hard drive that goes into the safe, one that goes home with you.
For anything replaceable: Get insured.
Oh, and if you have really valuable inventory and are running on low margin, get out of the business you are in.
It has a battery and a blinking LED so it looks like a camera is operating. I installed it in the alley and it stopped strangers driving down the alley. I have to change the battery every six months.
Given you put Arduino like options on the table you should checkout the Open Source Ninja Block ( http://ninjablocks.com/products/ninja-blocks-kit ). The Ninja Block (with it's free cloud service) lets you create rules that use it's sensors to send you alerts (via SMS/Email/Social Network etc). For example "if motion is detected, send an SMS". Included in the kit is a Motion Sensor and door/window contact sensor. You can get more sensors off the Ninja Blocks website. The Ninja Blocks community seems to also be growing strong: http://forums.ninjablocks.com/ If you want to tinker more, inside the Ninja Block is an Arduino compatible uC and an embedded Linux computer running Ubuntu.
A large mean-looking guard dog would be the best and most cost-effective measure. Especially if they could train it to dial 911.
I'm seeing a lot of partial solutions here. Both in what has been done, and in what is being proposed. The first thing you should be doing though has been mentioned, and that's talk with your insurance adjuster. At the very least you can find out what your liabilities are for various security measures, and possibly what measures will reduce your insurance rates.
Start by looking at what a thief is going to see as they look at how to enter the property. You may find the TV series from a few years back "it takes a thief" (or something like that) helpful in looking at the entire place for security problems. The doors and windows may be barred, but is it possible to gain access through the floor, or ceiling? Even a good barred door may be a problem if it's sheltered in such a way that you can't see if someone is working on the lock.
Part of that should also be looking at what you can do to improve deterrence. Signs, visible (if non-functional) alarm panels, even a steadily blinking light next to a sign labeled 'Alarm System' can be a deterrent.
And finally look for ways to monitor the approaches to the property both front and back, and if the building is stand alone, all around the building. You may want to use PIR along with IR Lighting to capture movement around the building.
If you are presuming that someone will break in after you've identified (and hopefully fixed) the issues from outside, then you're to the detect and defend internal options. High resolution cameras, covering the access points. Motion detection, door and window open sensors, glass break detectors, etc. These are intended to generate alerts and set up a means to capture what information you can about the thief. Tip, mark the door frame on either side of likely entrances with contrasting tape to form a crude (half foot or 20 cm increment) tape measure to give you a quick estimate of how tall someone passing by the entrance is.
Obviously you will need to decide for yourself how critical it is to secure different parts of your store. High value gem dealers usually place their entire stock in a vault of some sort overnight. If you know what the reason is behind the break-ins in the area (paying for drugs being common) you may be able to protect high value items by making it easier to steel a few low value items that you are less concerned about loosing.
Understand what the thief is working with. Unless you've been cased for a professional theft, in which case you're insurance carrier may have other suggestions for you, Most thefts are a snatch and grab variety, the thief is looking to get in, get something and get out. Be gone before the cops show up. If you know the cops will be there within 20 min, (talk with other businesses in the area that have experienced break-ins to find out if that estimate is even in the balpark) then you know how hard you have to make it for a thief to get at the valuables.
Also set policies (and follow them) for how to deal with elements of the store that are critical for operating. Assume that a thief can get the cash register, all cash within the store, and possibly your computers in the store. Does someone have a spare cash register, and operating cash for the day that they can bring in at the start of the day if you need to get going while making repairs? Is there sufficient spare stock in an off-site storage to get up and running the next business day, or are you going to be waiting a week for your suppliers to restock? Is the customer information on your systems at work in a secure system? Do you have off site backups of your inventory and books? Have you a policy of depositing all cash over and above what you absolutely have to have for daily operations on a nightly basis? Do you have multiple known locations where you can make those deposits so that if construction makes your usual after hours depository unavailable you can still make your deposit. Have you tested your off site backup solution to confirm that if your systems up and left, or a vandal cam in and drove a pick-ax
You never know...
The alert is after-the-fact, of course. And did the local police tell you what their (hopefully, substantiated) response time is???
Is it two minutes, twenty minutes or do they decline to say?
I have tripped alarms while working late and sat there waiting for the authorities while a loud horn blasted the neighborhood. No one came. The police later confirmed that they cannot cover everything. I guess so.
I have purchased fake or dummy surveillance cameras. The flashing light gets their attention. They are on line and cheap. They use a battery, so no wiring is needed. Just one more deterrent, something to make them think twice, hopefully.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaseous_fire_suppression And trigger it with the burglar alarm entry system. :)
No really, it works!
A simple sign with "Nevermind the dog, beware of the rattle snakes" should do it.
Excuse me, but please get off my Pennisetum Clandestinum, eh!
A non working Iphone attached to a pound of black powder and a pound of 16 penny nails.
When they pick up the phone boom no more problem.
Are you working for free? That means that you are paying for their security. Great if you are willing to do that, but it also means that if you are out of town on a holiday with no cell reception and there is an issue, who are they going to call?
And although this might be a fun project to work on, this is their livelihood you are experimenting with. And it is experimenting. Otherwise you would not ask the questions.
tell them this before that you will do a best effort, but that there are no guarantees that things either break down or that things do not go as you imagined they would happen. People are not recognizable because the camera was too high and not enough light in the place where the thief was. Too much light. Too low, so the staff filed a complaint about privacy invasion.
What happens if the internet connection is out? What if the power is out? What if the phone dies? What if the phone company kills the number, because they forgot to pay for the next installment in 5 years time?
The first thing you need to figure out why they broke into that store and not the one next door. Then you can start looking for ways to not want them to break in. Security camera's don't do anything and neither do motion detectors, unless they contact a security company.
The cheapest way to help them is to tell them to contact an expert who knows not only the technical stuff, but the rest as well. Where to put the camera's. Then propose them that you are there to ask all the technical questions to see if he knows what he is talking about and if you find any loopholes.
That way they can contact another small business owner and help the community as well as defend themselves. That person will be able what the advantages and disadvantages are, because of his experience.
Sure, not free, but cheaper then having not thought of one thing and closing the business because of it.
Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
http://laughingsquid.com/laserscan-a-fake-laser-security-system-for-fooling-thieves/
Link says it all. Sometimes all it takes is to make people think you've got a better security system, and an LED laser, a few rotating mirrors, and a keypad will dissuade a would-be thief from breaking in. Of course, it works better with a real monitored alarm, but getting people to not break in to begin with saves you money.
Often your insurance will demand certain CERTIFIED minimum requirements with your insurance premium going down the more you meet their requirements.
And those requirements don't have to make sense or be best practice but they are the difference between your insurance company paying out and not paying out.
If requirements made sense, we would LONG since have had HD camera's recording to HD's rather then very very very poor camera's recording to low quality tape. But your own 4k mug shot and tricorder scan of the perps DNA and entire social history will see your insurance claim thrown out with a scornful laugh while a certified wobbly 320x200 etcha sketch will get you fully re-imbursed.
So: First check with your insurance company.
Next: Crime prevention is about denying criminals what they want:
1 Fast
2 Easy
3 Cheap
4 Low risk
5 Money
So do stop criminals make their crime be
1 Slow
2 Hard
3 Expensive
4 High risk
5 Non paying.
Your shop needs a door and to be inviting it needs to be airy and this is done by making it out of glass. But a glass door is easily shattered. A wooden door with two large glass panes separated by a wood bar in the middle is ALMOST as inviting but now the burglar either needs to remove the door, open it or climb in through ONE of the smashed panels. This is slower. He will still get in but be able to steal less in the same amount of time. This makes it less profitable.
Shutter I mean one of those rollup "fences" that drop out ofthe celing, no idea what their english name is.
One thing you could do for instance is leave your display window open but install a shutter inside the store itself as an additional barrier to overcome. Barely visible during the day, at night an extra barrier. Many people place them infront of doors but this just requires you to lift the shutter, then bust in the doors that tend to open inwards.
Place an electrically lowered shutter BEHIND inwards opening doors, how do you open that one without a key? You can't push the doors in because the shutter is blocking that and you can't lift the shutter because the doors are in the way. Remember, theft prevention is like preventing being eaten by a lion, you don't need to be able to outrun the lion, you just need to outrun your neighbor.
Hard is similar to slow of course in that you make the burglars work just that little bit harder. Just one more lock, just one more barrier to overcome. One thing we as consumers hate is those plastic wraps around products but they have a simple reason. They are very large meaning it is hard to conceal for shop lifters or at least conceal as many. And they are hard to open to make it hard to open them and take their contents. We know this works because well, we all bitch about how hard they are to open. Most of the large plastic containers are pure theft prevention and contain a fully serviciable selling/display package inside for shops that don't need to fear shoplifters.
Do you NEED to store all your most valuable products in handy to carry containers right near the entrance to the warehouse? Or could you place your most expensive products on the highest shelf in the furthest corners? And lock up the ladder? And add some barbed wire to the shelves for those trying to climb it?
Think of shoe stores, if they are smart, they one have either the left or right shoe on display. Putting both the right and left shoe in the same size outside is asking for it but how many shoe thieves are interested in only left side shoes? I don't know if this was purely accidental but I did once notice that all the shoe shops in one area all had only the left shoes on display.
Expensive might be a little less clear but while you might think that a prepared thief can cut through any chain in any case you might as well get the cheapest available, the simple fact is that not all locks/chains etc are the same. And the better ones require mo
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
Is this place still slashdot of late? Its loosing its mojo. Zoneminder for chrissakes. With the pictures being uploaded to a remote server at intervals to stop them trashing the setup. This is 101
How much damage was there? How often is the alarm system expected to prevent such damage? What's the allowed upkeep? What impact does an alarm system have on insurance? How soon is the alarm system supposed to pay for itself?
Once you've answered all those questions... Define "inexpensive".
the definitive documentary on the subject
Don't have the alarm call or text you. That's a waste of valuable time. You're just going to call the cops anyway. And what happens if you're asleep, in a movie, flying, etc? More time wasted. Your job is not to wait for the call or text from your security system letting you know that an alarm has been triggered. Given that you've had break-ins before, I'd say you would drive yourself crazy making sure you're accessible 100% of the time in case a message came in.
Monthly central station service is the price of a couple pizzas.
Small price to pay for the peace of mind you get having someone ready to get the police there on a moment's notice anytime of the day or night.
Point some laser pointers at mirrors attached to a servo motor and make it look like there's a crazy cool scanning laser security system!!
Unexpect the expected!
You want a serious crime *deterrent* that's all but free and you want it to work well enough to make people stop stealing from you out of the goodness of their heart or because they're physically unable to.
Simple and straight truth: what are you smoking?
If you want results from something you have to spend the money on it.
Haven't any of you heard of IP cameras?
Why are idiots on here suggesting using a "webcam with a low powered PC"? Duh.
IP CAMERAS, on the outside of the building too, high up enough to be unnoticeable by potential thieves, (say 8 feet off the ground), and also inside near to the entrance, at head height, set up to auto e-mail you photos of the perps when any motion is detected.
Plus sturdier bars - I'd like to see the second set of 'security' they broke through. Why not set up a vibration detector on the bars/metal security (whatever it is), so that as soon as somebody starts trying to attack it, it will set off an alarm?
get a nice big dog
call homeland security and tell them that terrorists broke in
they will be all over it like flies on shit
just don't expect to do much business... everyone that walks into the store will have to be anally probed and interrogated, and there is a good chance every 3rd one will be sent to guantanamo bay on suspicion without charge... especially kids cos they are a real security risk (just ask the TSA)
The cold bitter truth is that you can't outsmart a stupid criminal. It doesn't matter how many alarms you have if they ignore them, or if they're on video after the damage is done. Video monitoring helps convict a criminal after the fact, in the off chance they're caught, and alarms might scare off a less determined criminal, but if they got past bars on windows, then I can only say that the defenses just waren't strong enough. Bars need to be bolted in more deeply, door need to be solidly mounted and reinforced, door frames and molding need to be reinforced and bolted firmly to the building's structural supports (or better yet replace wooden door frames with metal reinforced security doors), and given criminals will go as far as to ram a car through a display window, you'd better make it impossible to reach the storefront with a vehicle. Even a monitored system is only going to have police arrive in time to do the paperwork.
Given that with unlimited time a burglar can compromise any system, your best bet is to harden defenses enough to slow down a thief. A smash and grab means that thieves will usually ignore the more difficult targets. Any safes need to be firmly bolted down to the building's structural supports, and if there is no safe there needs to be one. If you do set up a DVR security system the DVR box needs to be hidden (i'd suggest in attic or basement space if possible, or otherwise also in a separate bolted down safe. Noise making alarms may attract help or at least cause the burglars to get in a hurry and reduce the time they have.
your options aren't free, they aren't even close to free, but you can trade off labor for money in installation and setup at least. If you truly want to stop a robbery cold though, an armed guard is about the only thing that's going to do it.
Please excuse me for being dense ...
How can Chinese no-name gadgets yell in Korean ?
Muchas Gracias, Señor Edward Snowden !
Notification is secondary. Really...it's like a rape victim having a play-by-play announcer during the act if all you get to do is watch a real time video of the robbery.
Dog is good.
Smoke bombs are good, choke them out.
If smoke is too damaging to smell, an intense aerosol mist of peppermint or cinnamon extracts might make someone evacuate, yet leave a pleasant aroma in the morning.
Blaring alarm is good, best if it's well beyond the pain threshold.
Make it a horrible place to be.
A cute story, paraphrased from the annals of the skunk works: the most secure documents were kept in a "janitor's closet", with a hardware store padlock. A bunch of unimportant drivel was locked in a conspicuous and expensive nearby safe.
So...keep a cheap portable safe by the register. Put a lojac type device on it. Surprise, you just strained your back stealing a tracking device!
That's actually the same device.
Or rocks. Or bricks.
In the future, I would want to not be isolated from my friends in the Space Station.
Get a motion-activated vandalism-proof boom box set to loop Justin Bieber 'music'.
http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bat-signal.jpg
Having an e-mail or text/SMS as the way to alert might not be as good as you think, as you are relying on others to actually sent it, with no confirmation that it have reached the recipient in time.
Mail can bounce, and you will not know about it until a couple of days later...
Texts/SMS is'n bulletproof either - shure they mostley are delivered in a timley matter, but some get lost and others delayed.
So here is my suggestion: ;-)
Have a dialup connected to the alarm so it can leave a voice message, if the first number is busy, it can try a whole list of them... if no one responds, instant confirmation and it can move on to the next one.
Whether you want to buy a dialup or build it yourself, maybe from an old computer and asterisk or such - i leave that to you
I don't know how is in US, but in Romania there are security companies that provide 24/7 monitoring for as little as 40$ a month with a contract that guaranties a 7 minutes response, if you want lower you pay more. They include motion sensors & means to connect directly to their teams to alert the closest one. I own a small business and had no problems until now. But they usually call me if they see an unusual pattern - like opening at night or if I forget to set the motion sensors on after a certain hour. They even provide you with a panic button.
Is there anything like that for small business in US?
And a large pull-activated firecracker, set to go off when the safe is opened.
Not exactly cheap, but one step up from the fake laser light show devices. http://www.freaklasers.com/laser-dazzlers-300mw-600mw.html
Excuse me, but please get off my Pennisetum Clandestinum, eh!
A cow fence could be a good idea, but it is easily defeated by anyone slightly more intelligent than a cow. A green laser dazzler and a sound bomb might be better. Anyhow, a combination of a cow fence, dazzler, sound bomb, smoke and bear spray, may be a useful deterrent...
Excuse me, but please get off my Pennisetum Clandestinum, eh!
I install cameras for customers, and I would advise you to forget CCTV as a way to stop break-ins. I get a lot of prospective customers who want cameras to deter intruders and advise them the same way. Good camera systems, which pretty much leaves out video, is useful to catch shoplifters, light fingered employees, improper use of resources, and reduce liability in the event of an accident and law suit. If you want to stop intrusion, secure the property (if they got through bars, you need better bars), and have a professional company install an alarm with central monitoring and security staff.
Getting a picture of an intruder is useless. Getting a picture of an intruder wearing sunglasses is even more useless.
An Alarm with glass break, lights, loud siren and guards on the way ought to stop them. If it doesn't, move.
CM www.cometenergysystems.com Blog: http://caribbeanrenewable.blogspot.com/
the ED-209 is still on ebay! you only need to animate it, rig it to the security system and have it use quotes from the movies... and you got a great deterrent! if it doesn't work, get a targeting system and a couple pistols rigged in ^_^
Well yeah, what I made was a bit more powerful than what you'd use for a cow fence..
The key is, the store is his home. His people (the owners) come to visit him and spend time with him there every day. He gets lots of visitors who he can greet (customers).
End of the business day, his people leave him a small amount of food, plenty of fresh water, and a nice place to sleep, as well as run of the store.
Post signs. Dawgs protect their territory, which is why it needs to be HIS store (his home), not a bring to work dawg.
Caveat Emptor: check with the liability insurance carrier up front.
Red
It is called a 'shotgun sleepover'. Call your redneck friends over. Promise a case of beer per burglar.
Be happy that you're still around posting the results here, instead of sitting in jail for murder.
Nah it wasn't powerful enough to kill somebody, made sure of that. Never sufficient charge in the circuit for a fatal current combined with very high frequency discharge. Just hurts very badly. Additionally thieves aren't human, they're sub-human scum that deserves to die anyway. Why is it so hard to leave other people's things alone for certain people?
Once you shoot the first one word spreads quickly, problem solved. Given a choice a criminal will always take the path of least resistance and a bullet always travels faster than police.
Watch the Mythbusters episode again. What they considered "busted" was the part in the movie where the car rose up over the rear wheels and kept going. Instead, the rear axle broke loose of the suspension, but the wheel wells kept it from being left behind. AFTER trashing the suspension and the underside of trunk, the cable broke. Mythbusters said "this car will not be driving any further". The Mythbusters test can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRHMNc5WyB4&feature=youtube_gdata_player
It is powerful enough for this:
The skin of his hands was white and black due to the burns.
But:
Nah it wasn't powerful enough to kill somebody, made sure of that.
That is totally contradictory.
A quick look at some web sites gives me answers of 15 mA across the heart to be the minimum lethal current, while burns can be expected at currents of 200 mA and above. That are huge currents to run through one's body, and if any vital organs are in the way (e.g. hand to foot - drawer to ground) it's simply lethal.
Cattle fences give nasty shocks, yet work at far lower voltages than 170 kV (2-10 kV usually), and give pulses of just microseconds in length instead of being constant on like you do.
Lightning strikes produce burns while victims often actually survive, thanks to this being a very short pulse and the current is usually running mostly along the skin, and not through the body. Of course we all know lightning can very well be lethal. High voltages are just not something to fool around with.
You gave the solution yourself, high frequency. Additionally the burns are due to arcing when you pull your hand away. And what did he learn from that? Never steal things that belong to my deceased girlfriend.
No amount of monitoring will stop someone. That only helps for the cleanup. It also serves to show you aren't around much to watch it yourself.
Get a dog. a BIG dog.
Timothy,
Please learn how to post "Ask Slashdot" stories in the actual Ask Slashdot category so that the exclusions filters actually work.
Fnord666
'The tyrant will always find pretext for his tyranny.' - Aesop's Fables
They are quite effective (I've heard).
However, they do tend to be a bit top-heavy, and easily tipped.
They are quite polite.
"For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong."
-H. L. Mencken
Separately from the permit for the alarm itself, you also need to be licensed if you're being paid to install a system. In Texas, it's a third degree FELONY, I think, to install systems for pay without a license. Other US states are mostly similar. * The same agency that regulates security professionals regulates PIs. Unlicensed PI work is a felony. Unlicensed security work may be a class A misdemeanor, in which caae max penalty would be 1 year jail.
I was thinking of a solution where you could hsvr multiple gopro cameras (1080p) that automatically starts recording when the arduino sensors are triggered..The cool thing about this is they already have an internet connection which allows you to connect to the devices and watch the break-ins as it's happening. The difficult part would be to program the arduino device for different sensor functions and send an email, and start recording at the same time. This email would alert you to the break in and when the video starts recording you can connect directly to the recording stream (realtime) and verify that its truly a breakin. The only concerns would be that the cameras use wireless and a thief that sniffs network traffic (doing their homework) could find the stream unless you get a wireless router that will limit the area of broadcast. Most BE's are looking to get in and out so you can bet that they do their homework. I think something along this route would help you if they are looking for a cheap solution...
You can buy a wired DSC kit for about $120. Additional motion detectors (I recommend DSC Bravo's) for about $35/each on amazon.
Google "alarm monitoring diy" and choose a monitoring service. I've seen them as low as $8/month if you pay a year in advance. Most of these services can provide you with a certificate to take to your insurance company. Monitoring usually pays for itself in this sense by reducing your insurance costs.
Find an old computer, something that isn't exactly an Intel Atom but has some sort of horsepower to it. A Core 2 Duo would be perfect. Install a Linux distro on it (I use Ubuntu) and install "Motion" from the repos via sudo apt-get install motion. Motion is a motion detection service that runs as a daemon, so it starts once the system fires up. It works based on MJPG streams, so you won't get epic 3000 FPS HD 1080 quality shots, but if you run the cameras at say 5 FPS, you're still getting 5 JPG snapshots per second, which is often more than enough to ID somebody. Cameras could be a wide range, but the cameras will dictate the quality of image you get, so do your homework beforehand. Wired is always preferred to wireless, but I've used wireless cameras that were "okay". I wouldn't consider them for a situation like this, though. Also, consider routing your feeds to a secondary box on the premises, or perhaps to an off-site box all together. Tons of options there. Maybe you could run an rsync job via cron every 60 seconds and sync the data over SSH to another box, whether it be on the same LAN or at another property. lsyncd looks interesting too, which seems to be (based on 10 seconds of reading) a "live" rsync between two servers. Worth considering. Keep in mind if anybody breaks in and steals the box, you got nothing. Having a 2nd up-to-date box running would be the ultimate combo. Linux is free. Motion is free. The computer would be cheap (Craigslist or repurpose one you already have). The biggest cost here would be the cameras... and believe me, you get what you pay for. Food for thought. For what it's worth, I've used ZoneMinder heavily, but it had random crashes and populated my error logs with thousands of errors I couldn't ever come to terms with. Motion has yet to let me down. Sure, it has no GUI and runs entirely as a daemon, but it's rock solid in terms of reliability and has given me zero reason to consider anything else. Here's a Motion tutorial I set up earlier this year. Note that there is a Part 2 on YouTube as well. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwDLkMPLTw0
Security through absurdity "I really think the company should be using that phrase"
LaserScan, A Fake Laser Security System for Fooling Thieves
I know you said lean lifestyle, but if they have a smartphone there are tons of several hundred dollar DVRs with an Ipad or Android App that will stream you real time video upon motion. Not to endorse a particluar store, but
http://www.homedepot.com/Electrical-Home-Security-Video-Surveillance-Video-Surveillance-Systems-Surveillance-Kits/h_d1/N-5yc1vZc1xv/R-203217686/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&storeId=10051
Here are two interesting links to commercial products that may solve the problem for you, unless you think you are being targeted by professional burglars. I do not in any way benefit from the sale of these products.
A fake system which may be effective because of the intimidation factor. Bruce Schnieir commented about it on his security blog. Pretty cheap ($200) if it works. Read the blog then watch the video it links to.
http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2012/08/200_for_a_fake.html
A commercially available system. I know nothing about it except that an acquaintance installed it in his business and says it helped him eliminate problems. It doesn't stop everything but allows him to identify the culprits. There are probably similar systems available in your area. Here is the link to the testimonials page.
http://www.ezwatch.com/testimonials
Milestone makes a pretty awesome commercial package, not cheap, but they do have a free(requires registration?) version that supports 8 cameras, 1 user and 5 day retention. In their higher end product, their big selling point is ease of research when you are looking for specific activity. I haven't tried the free version, so not sure how feature stripped it is. They support a ton of IP cameras.
If there isn't anything the dog can mess up... Leave a rottweiler in the store at night. When they see it pacing the window...they will think twice.
Also, add cameras that stream to a different location. Put sensors on the doors and impact sensors on the windows.
Then call it done.
Because your business is worth more than their lives! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fO7s9y9Vjtg Apply this principal to your shop security. What could possibly go wrong?!
It's not well known it it rocks for this purpose.
very active with excellent info:
http://cocoontech.com/forums/
Something like an email or text to a laptop at home, or a dedicated prepaid phone, but without the pitfalls of such a solution (i.e. random wrong numbers, solicitors, email spam, etc).
Just set up a new e-mail account for the alerts to go to, and don't publish the address or use the account to send any outgoing e-mails. In order for you to receive spam at an address, first that address needs to be out there to be harvested.
I just suggest you move out of Manhattan to an area that is known to have less crime if you're that worried.
The thing which worries me about a camera is that the thief sees it, and thinks "Oh shit" and panics, and thinks, "How do I get rid of the evidence?" and decides its a good idea to set fire to the place.
I'm surprised no one has mentioned Dropcam yet. Cloud based HD video security monitoring using Wi-Fi enabled cameras, which include audio and motion alerts that send directly to email or Android/iPhone devices.
The video quality is just fine if you include a motion activated light, and it's cheap enough to add three or four of them to cover all entrances (including windows.)
For a basic subscription, it will keep 7 days of video monitoring online, as well as sending you alerts.
As a bonus, it lets you talk back to the camera....
Paul Gillingwater
MBA, CISSP, CISM
A friend of mine but this into his car but the idea may work with buildings as well. His ideas was that potential thieves always try the doors first because they might be unlocked so he put microswitches into the door handles and had them immediately set off the alarm.
But my thought is for the door handle to alert the owners by SMS so that they can go there immediately. You want to know about the first thing which happens to give you more time.
http://michaelsmith.id.au
It sounds like fun if you use psychology instead of projectiles -- have a highly visible camera on a gimbal targeting the intruder, with a tiny red laser - accompanied by a playing a recording of a massive capacitor charging up. Text-to-speech voice saying "Target Acquired". Play subsonics with a good subwhoofer, say 10-18Hz sine wave to give them that good old fashioned sense of unease.
Do not mock my vision of impractical footwear
Stay open 24/7 ---
In what way? Mythbusters use the scientific method to test claims. They measure, experiment, collect data on a variety of scenarios - controlling and testing different variables on each pass - and report on their findings.
Very enjoyable when they use their approach to prove a myth is possible. But when a Myth is proclaimed to be "busted"? Often, they ignore the particular assumptions and constraints of their particular implementation of the tested Myth, for the purpose of making broad sweeping claims of impossibility -- just so they can wrap up the show with a nice sound bite.
If they were a little more humble about their own limitations, I would accept it as an example of the difficulty in proving a negative. Instead, they turn it into an unintentional parody of Bad Inductive Reasoning.
"When an elderly and distinguished scientist tells you that something is possible, he is very probably right. When he tells you that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong" - Arthur C. Clarke.
1. Twine and here
2. Sensors (Motion detection, window and door sensors etc..) that alert via SMS to your phone so you can call police and/or catch them in the act. Perhaps a silent-alarm (no audible alarm). You could obviously add video and images too. Just a linux PC or rasberry pi even that's connected to the net could do it.
Look into tear gas or colored (so as not to be mistaken for fire) smoke dispensers. You could build your own using orange smoke grenades etc, but ensure your enclosure is fire-safe.
Physical security can SLOW attackers, but doesn't DENY them the premises.
Example, I've not used these:
http://burglarbomb.com/
"This post is an artistic work of fiction and falsehood. Only a fool would take anything posted here as fact."
... and buy insurance. Contract for immediate armed response to the alarm if you really want somebody to get hurt.
Voices, and light are a deterrent. Leave a radio on so you can hear it from outside the door. Particularly a talk show. Perhaps sleep there every once and a while in case someone is keeping an eye on it.
Try it for yourself, leave your radio on before you go out. Be gone long enough to forget about it, when you get back you wonder who is inside.
For rural areas, at least, they are *really* efficient.
Whatever happened to doing it the old-fashioned way? 1. Attack dogs inside the premises 2. Boards with spikes pointing upward on the floor in front of all doors and windows And please do not tell me that it is inhumane. You are talking about people stealing from you.
Best Regards, David Geer
SPEND THE NITE WITH .12 GAUGE SHOTGUN & DOUBLE OUGHT BUCKSHOT... works well in Houston Texas!
I had two breaking attempts last year. After the first attempt, I had my landlord install better locks, and I also made my own security solution. Being in an apartment, I can't get a major brand alarm system (that comes with a three year contract)
So, I bought a Panasonic BL-C230A web camera. I made custom mobile page on a website, which I use to arm and disarm my "alarm". I've also setup the panasonic camera to visit a URL every time it detects motion. If the alarm is armed and it receives a visit on this URL, it will send me a text message and an email letting me know that it has detected motion. I also have it uploaded an image to an offsite FTP server whenever it records motion (which is somewhat bandwidth intensive). However, I can pull up a website and see every recent event that happened in my apartment.
I also contemplated using Tropo as an alerting system for phone and SMS. Doing so would even let me setup a call tree and all that. I never got around to implementing it but it seems like it would have worked well for this.
Also, I tried a D-Link model before the Panasonic webcam. The Panasonic ended up being the best camera for this solution though. The huge feature is the infrared motion sensor. Most webcams seem to detect motion by a determining a change in the image. However, if anything causes the change shift quickly, these give off a false positive. Which is not a great thing for an alarm to do several times a day. A few other nice features are the FTP capability, visiting a webpage when motion is detected, PTZ, and external inputs and outputs (for example, you could use these for a door open/close sensor or a siren).