Home Defense Tactics & Home Security

Statistically speaking, this is the safest time in history to be alive, but that doesn’t mean bad things don’t happen all the time. Our home is where all our belongings are, where our family is, and where we should feel the safest. Because of this, home security and home defense tactics should be a top priority, but are often overlooked.



It’s human nature to become complacent when nothing happens.
This is why preppers tend to get a bad rap. We look at possible disaster
scenarios and plan for them, regardless how likely or unlikely they are. Because
our home is our sanctuary, defending it (and everything in it) should be a top
priority.



If someone want’s to get into your home badly enough, they probably will. But there are some things we can do make that harder, and possibly deter a home invasion in the first place. We also need to consider what to do if and when they gain access to our home.



Expectation of
Privacy Zones



Before we begin to think about home defense tactics and home
security, we need to think about what we can, and can’t do. Because the most
frequent visitor to our homes is the FedEx driver these days, it’s not feasible
to fortify our property like a military base.



No Expectation of
Privacy: In public areas like roads and sidewalks there isn’t much we can
do about who travels those paths. We can however monitor those areas and set up
deterrents to incentivize people to stay in that public area, and off our
property.



Limited Expectation
of Privacy: A driveway is an area of your property that you would have a
limited expectation of privacy. We need to make these areas somewhat available
for visitors and deliveries. These should be the only areas of our property
that unexpected guests have access to.



Complete Expectation of
Privacy: Our front yards, back yards and our home are areas where we have
an expectation of complete privacy. This means that unless they were invited,
they are trespassing on our property when they enter these zones.



Home Invasion Deterrents



Before I get into the three areas of your property to cover when thinking about home defense tactics, I want to go over deterrents first. Deterrents go hand in hand with perimeter and property security. 



Deterrents are a great way of solving a problem before it becomes one. Criminals are opportunists and are looking for an easy score. The more your home looks like a challenge, the more likely they are to move on.



Dogs For Home Defense



Having a dog is like having a low cost security guard, all you have to do is feed it. Obviously, the larger the dog, the bigger the deterrent, but even small dogs can be effective.



If you don’t own a dog, you can still make it look like you do. Having a dog house, dog bones in the yard, or a dog chain can be a good home defense tactic. Keep in mind, this is a bluff if you don’t actually have a dog.



Yard Signs



As criminals of anyone wanting to enter your property case your home, they are looking for signals about how easy of a target it will be.



Signs like “beware of dog”, “gun owner inside” or “Smile, Your on Camera” can make them think twice about your home. Just like dogs, it’s more effective to have these things if you have the signs.



Perimeter Fencing



Having your perimeter blocked off is more of a ...