How to handle a false alarm.

Your Security Tips

What to Do if You Have a False Alarm

A false alarm can be a source of panic for anybody, but what happens after the system goes off, doesn't have to be alarming. Follow these guidelines for panic-free false alarms:
Remain calm so you can remember your access code and personal identification code.
Disarm your system, being careful to press each number of your access code slowly and deliberately.
Once you have reset the system, have your personal identification code ready. Call the monitoring company to report the accidental activation.
If you find the phone has disconnected, wait a few seconds and try again. Your alarm system has temporarily turned off the phone while it is calling the monitoring company. It will release the lines when its call cycle is complete. Continue to call until you have reached the monitoring company.
Remain at your home or business until you have spoken with the monitoring company.
Take the "panic" out of false alarms by preparing ahead of time:
Rehearse emergency drills with everyone in your home or commercial building.
Make sure all persons with a key know how to operate your system and how to cancel an accidental alarm.
Inform all users of who to call in the event of an alarm and to have their personal identification code ready.
Keep your security system instruction book and the phone number for the monitoring company handy.
Immediately cancel all alarms not requiring emergency response.

Door to Door Sales Crews

To our valued Total Protection customers as the provider of your home security services, Total Protection wants to alert you to a potential threat. Unscrupulous door to door sales people are visiting homes in the Salt Lake area and offering to upgrade security systems for FREE. They may even suggest they are with Total Protection or GE None of this is true.  You will be switched to a new security provider, pay higher monthly fees, Sign a  long contract and may even be putting your home security at risk.

Be wary of anyone attempting to alter your security service. Contact us at 801-583-7233 if you have any questions about your system or your coverage. If you feel like you need additional protection we can help you and make it very affordable if you are a monitored customer.

Total Protection is one of the most respected alarm companies in Utah. We have been protecting homes and families like yours since 1999. We've got you covered!

Here are some news stories that we found after a short search on the Internet. There are many companies that we have had complaints about and wanted to show some examples of the problems that we have seen.







Remember Total Protection Inc. will not be going door to door updating security systems. If you feel that you need additional equipment we can make it very affordable after all you are an existing customer and we value your business.

Once again contact us at 583-7233 if you have any questions concerning your home security.

Tips for around the yard.

If you can keep your yard in order you can lower the chances that a burglar will target your home.

* Keep ladders, garbage cans, building supplies and tools locked up out of view so you don't provide an intruder with the means to break into your home.
* Put big, bold numbers on your mailbox so your home can easily be identified in case of an emergency.
* Never put your name on your mailbox. Anyone can call directory assistance, get your number, and find out you aren't home.
* Don't hide a spare key near your front door; burglars know all the hiding places. Leave a spare key with a trusted neighbor instead.
* Planting thorny shrubs, rosebushes or cacti around the outside of your home can discourage burglars from entering your property.
* Placing alarm-company signs, neighborhood-watch decals or dog notices on your property tells burglars to steer clear of your home. Having these signs as a deterrent is only good if you can back them up. Don't rely on them or mistake them as doing the job of the real thing.
* Trim shrubs and trees so they do not provide hiding places for an intruder. Remove tree limbs that could allow someone to climb to an upper-story window or balcony.
* A solid privacy fence can provide a burglar with cover to break into your home. Consider an iron railing (topped with spikes, to discourage climbers), picket or chain-link fence instead. If you have a gate, install a strong magnetic lock on it to prevent intruders from easily penetrating the perimeter of your property.
* Keep all points of entry to your home well-lit. Consider installing motion-sensor lights on the rear and sides of your home and position them in out-of-reach places so they can't easily be turned off by a would-be thief.
* Spending most of your day in the back yard may be relaxing, but it leaves you clueless as to what's going on out front. Make sure all entry points are locked in the front of your house.
* If you travel a lot, surveillance cameras around your property — with viewing access through the Internet — will allow you to keep an eye on your home while you're gone.
* Install cameras that operate off a motion sensor to keep from wasting valuable hard-drive space for your video files.
* Consider buying a wireless annunciator, which will alert you — anywhere in your home — when someone comes up your driveway or otherwise enters your property within 50 feet of its range

This tip from http://dsc.discovery.com

Valuables and Your Identity

There are many things that you can do to protect your valuables to make them harder for someone to sell and easier for you to get back if they end up with your stuff.

* Having photos, videos and serial numbers of your valuables can be extremely helpful in identifying your stolen goods.
* Contact the manufacturers of some of your valuables, as they may have advice or additional products on how to better secure and protect them from thieves.
* Get your driver's license number (NOT your Social Security number) engraved on any expensive electronic equipment. Doing so can not only assist in their return, but can actually dissuade theft: Marked property is difficult to sell or pawn.
* Invisible-ink pens can be used to identify your property. Again, using your driver's license number as an I.D., a simple ultraviolet light on stolen property will show the police who the real owner is.
* Photocopy receipts of expensive items and store them in a safe place so you have proof of purchase for insurance reasons.
* Use a bolted-down safe or a heavy-duty filing cabinet with a lock that cannot be carried out of the house to store important documents, information and valuables. It's a simple investment that will protect vital possessions.
* Shredding documents with personal information (such as bank and credit-card statements or anything with a Social Security number on it) will keep a burglar or someone looking through your trash from finding your information and assuming your identity.
* Credit cards are immediate cash — keep records of what cards you have, always keep them signed on the back and any surplus cards should be kept in a safe.
* Keep equipment for expensive hobbies (boats, Jet Skis, golf clubs, etc.) covered up — even better, keep them locked up out of sight.
* What you think is well hidden is nearly always easy pickings for burglars, so lock things up instead of keeping them in "clever" hiding places like the freezer, the bag of sugar or the cookie jar.
* Leaving empty boxes from your new computer, DVD player or TV on the curb for trash pickup advertises that you have things worth stealing in your home. Break boxes down or cut them up to conceal what they contained.
* A computer lock is an easy and inexpensive way to protect valuable personal or customer information. Computers are expensive items to replace.
*If you have an alarm always make sure it is being used regularly.
* Blank CDs are a cheap and easy way to back up information on your computer in case it's stolen.
* Instead of keeping jewels hidden in your home, a safe-deposit box is a smart place to keep valuables secure from theft. If you insist on keeping them in the house, lock your jewelry and other valuables in a bolted-down floor safe.
* Keep information about your safe-deposit box separate from any personal identification documents such as passports or Social Security cards. If these documents are stolen, you could suffer further losses if someone is able to use them to gain access to your safe-deposit box.
* Secure furs like you would any other valuable: Keep them in a closet with a dead bolt, and be sure to monogram or write your name on the skin of your fur to aid identification and recovery in case it is stolen.
* Be sure to lock your bikes and four-wheelers to a bolted-down surface.
* For pricey heirlooms, get serious about securing them. First, invest in an appraiser to have a firm dollar figure on your valuables. Then photograph, catalogue and put them on your homeowner's policy. So if a heist ever goes down, you're covered.

This tip from http://dsc.discovery.com

Vacation Prep.

This picture was taken by our office manager while taking a well deserved vacation in Cancun. So if you find yourself going on vacation do these things to ensure you come home to a secure home:

* Set lights on timers or light sensors to turn on and off in the evening. A TV or radio can also be set on a timer to add to the illusion that someone is at home.
* Suspend newspaper delivery so papers do not pile up in front of your house.
* If you have a separate mailbox, rather than a mail slot, put your mail on hold.
* Ask a neighbor to keep an eye on your house and pick up any mail, fliers, newspapers, packages, etc., left outside, and shovel your walkways if it snows.
* If you use a yard service, make sure they come to your house while you're away. An overgrown lawn is a good sign that no one is home.
* Leave a car in your driveway, or ask a neighbor to park there.
* Don't record a new message on your home answering machine indicating where you are or how long you'll be away. You'll be issuing an open invitation for someone to rob your house.
* Leave shades, curtains and blinds in their normal positions. Covered windows during the daytime indicate an empty house.
* If you have an alarm system make sure your emergency contact list is updated. Also instruct anyone that may come in your house how to use your alarm.

General Security Tips

Here are some general tips that will help you and your family be safer.

* Getting to know your neighbors will help them to immediately alert you of any suspicious behavior on your property. Notifying them when you're going away and how you can be contacted in case of emergency will allow you to be aware of a crisis as soon as it occurs. However, although your neighbors may be trustworthy, they may not spot anything different if a robber is at work in your house. Don't solely count on them to protect your home while you're away.
* Don't be fooled into thinking that just because your neighbors can see local comings and goings that they will question anything unusual. Good thieves make themselves blend in.
* Be careful to whom you disclose personal information. Don't discuss vacation plans or expensive hobbies in public places — you never know who's listening!
* If you're a professional working out of your house, rather than use your home address on your business cards or Web site, rent a post-office box instead.
* Becoming involved in a neighborhood association or neighborhood watch will give you information you need to know about any suspicious activity in your area.
* Be informed: Check your local newspaper for crime reports in your neighborhood.
* It doesn't matter what environment or community your home is in, thieves are impervious to them.
* If you come home and something looks questionable — a slit screen, a broken window, an open door — don't go inside! Call the police from your neighbor's or from your cell phone.
* If you are new to homeownership, contact your local crime-prevention organization for advice on how to start securing your home. With no super to rely on, all those jobs will need attention from you now!
* Burglars often target the elderly, so be friendly and keep an eye out for local retirees.
* When living with multiple people, make sure everyone understands the importance of home security. It only takes one person to leave everyone else vulnerable. But don't rely on others; keep your private possessions locked away.
* If you have had a bad experience already with a crook — learn from it — don't just think bad luck won't strike twice!