Stephanie Carruthers makes her living breaking into phones, private accounts and more. But don’t worry — she’s doing it to help keep you safe. This IBM privacy expert and professional hacker shows Kim just how easy it is to get fooled by a digital criminal. Check out her tips for recognizing scams and keeping yourself secure online and offline.
Home security 101: The best and worst places to set up motion sensors
If you want to build a robust home security system, motion sensors are a must. They let you know when an intruder has already breached your defenses so you aren’t taken by surprise. With their help, you can formulate a plan of defense and take action.
Motion sensors are just like real estate in that it all comes down to location, location, location. You’ll get better results if you set up your sensors in specific areas — and you can shoot yourself in the foot if you put them in ineffective places.
Here’s our guide to the best and worst places to set up motion sensors, brought to you by our sponsor SimpliSafe.
Do place a sensor on the the alcohol cabinet
If you have teens in the house, you want to make sure they’re safe. When you leave for date night or a business trip, you won’t be able to physically keep an eye on your wine cellar or alcohol cabinet. To make sure your kids are staying away from the hooch, set up a motion sensor that will tip you off when someone’s moving the door or opening up a cabinet they shouldn’t be.
Don’t place a sensor near a heat source
Avoid placement near anything that causes sudden changes in a room’s temperature. So if you have hot air vents, radiators, kerosene heaters or any kind of portable heater, keep your motion sensors far away. The change in temperature could trigger a false alarm.
Do place a sensor in the corner of your master bedroom
Security experts say motion sensors work well when you place them in the corner of a room. If a burglar sees a sensor, they may look for a blind spot to take advantage of, so it’s best to try to hide them. Plus, this placement makes sensors more likely to notice unauthorized motion since they’re covering a large swath of the room.
Many of your valuables are likely in the master bedroom, which is why many home invaders target this room first. They want jewelry, money, personal gadgets and other valuables. So don’t miss out on your master bedroom when you’re setting up sensors.
Do place a sensor on the medicine cabinet
You’d be surprised to find out how much your pain medication can make an unscrupulous house guest. It’s not unheard of for people to sneak into their host’s bathroom and rifle through the medicines to find pills to steal. Catch any potential “entrepreneurs” by placing a motion sensor on the door so you can know right when someone’s breaking in.
5 simple ways to protect your home this winter
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Winter months can bring some serious challenges for homeowners. Icy driveways, slick walkways and frozen pipes can cause a lot of damage.
Whether you tough it out or take off to warmer climates, you want to keep your home safe over the winter months. That means you need protection from thieves while you’re away. Protect your home with the security system that protects Kim’s family, SimpliSafe. Visit SimpliSafeKim.com today to save 40% on a home security system and get your first month free when you sign up for Interactive Monitoring.
Anyone can see the layout of your home and what you paid for it - Do this to stay safe
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There’s more information about you online than you probably realize. Your hacked passwords, your address, even your credit card details.
Details about your home are everywhere, too. Government sites and resources like Zillow and Redfin list everything from what you paid to the very layout of your house.
Have a SimpliSafe system? There's a brand new HD outdoor camera to add to your home's arsenal
SimpliSafe.com
When it comes to home security, you need a company you can trust. Traditional home security companies are all about the bottom line. You work with a salesperson to find a system, someone comes over to install it, then you’re locked into a long contract with high monthly fees.
How to stop your smart TV from spying on you
Not only is your smart TV gobbling up your viewing data, but it also may be gathering information about your home. Can you minimize your smart TV’s snooping activities? Our advice: Turn off its tracking features. I’ll tell you how.
6 essential features you need in a home security system
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Most people who don’t have home security systems yet are probably still planning on installing one in the future. How many times have you left your home thinking, “I wish I had some kind of protection system in place?”
Headed back to the office? Best way to keep an eye on your home from anywhere
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You know the stress of being a parent. When the kids were young, you jumped at every sneeze, cough and wobbly step.
Now that they’re young adults or teenagers, there are different stresses. Are they driving while distracted by texts and social media messages? At home, are they safe? Are they being responsible for getting home on time from school, not raiding your liquor cabinet and staying out of trouble?
Comparison: SimpliSafe vs. ADT vs. Vivint
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This is pretty cool. We wanted to do a visual comparison to show you how SimpliSafe is the better choice for home security, so we decided to look at two big-name competitors — ADT and Vivint.
You never know what’s going to happen when you compare a sponsor to its competitors, but we were thrilled with what we found.
SimpliSafe's winter sweater sounds the alarm when people stand too close
Sick of people standing too close to you? Here’s a great new way to enforce the six-foot social distancing rule: Sound a siren through your sweater!
That’s the idea behind SimpliSafe’s new sweater. The company that keeps your family safe and sound made its own festive garment this year, decked out in tech to inspire social distance.
Take the guesswork out of home security
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It’s almost a new year, and that means you’re likely contemplating New Year’s resolutions. One of them should be to make improvements to your home security system.
Start 2021 off right and keep your family safe by adopting a security setup from our sponsor, SimpliSafe. It’s Kim’s pick for lots of reasons.
Kim's pick for home security: Get a FREE HD camera
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Do you feel 100% confident your home is safe from thieves and break-ins? What about disasters like a flood or fire?
Not being protected is a scary way to live. The good news is it’s easy and affordable to protect you, your home and your family 24/7. With SimpliSafe, you order everything you need online at SimpliSafeKim.com, install it in under an hour and activate the system. After that, your family is protected by professional security monitoring, all with no contracts.
Amazon wants you to buy its new indoor security drone – It's a bad idea
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Apple isn’t the only tech company with a major event this fall. Amazon just wrapped up its own set of announcements that include a trove of new devices — as well as updates to some of your favorite gadgets.
Why so many new gadgets? Many of these products have been in the works for a while, but let’s be real: Amazon had to do something with all that money it made during the pandemic. Tap or click here to see how much it made compared to Black Friday.
Now, more than ever, it's time to protect your home
SimpliSafe
Like millions of Americans, the coronavirus pandemic most likely has you practicing social distancing. With all the uncertainty in the world, feeling safe at home has never been more important.
That’s why we want to talk to you about home security. SimpliSafe has made it easy to get protection for your entire home, without a technician or salesperson coming to your house.
Stuck at home? Make sure your vacation property is safe without having to travel
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Do you own a second home? It’s pretty common to own a vacation home or rental property. In fact, it’s estimated that nearly 7.5 million Americans do.
With coronavirus (COVID-19) fears and travel restrictions ramping up, you might not be able to take that trip you were planning anytime soon. These are strange times and you might be worried about your other property if you can’t travel there.
SimpliSafe protects your whole house in under an hour
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You’ve probably heard how easy it is to protect your family, home and valuables these days. It’s nothing like the hassle it used to be.
Technology has changed everything — and simplified it, too. That’s because wireless technology has made installing home security an afternoon project, rather than the all-day nightmare it was when techs had to drill holes in your walls, cut wires and mount a system that worked just OK.
Video doorbell company is making a major privacy change you should know about
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Living in a digital world makes it ridiculously difficult to protect our privacy. Cybercriminals do their best to trick unsuspecting victims into handing over sensitive information all the time, not to mention hackers who just steal it.
3 critical features that make a home security system great
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Protect your home from intruders and other elemental hazards with help from our sponsor, SimpliSafe’s, complete home security system.
It’s easy to install, with no drilling involved — you can do it yourself in less than 15 minutes! Their service does not require contracts, and it offers 24/7 professional alarm monitoring for less than 50 cents a day.
5 must-have features for home security
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Throwing up a sign that reads, “Warning! Beware of dog!” isn’t strong enough security for your home. You actually need a system that will protect your most prized possessions, whether you’re home or away.
Every good security system watches your windows and doors, but you need more. Disasters like freezes, floods and fires could cost your home. We recommend our sponsor, SimpliSafe. If you’re thinking about home security, there is no better time, because SimpliSafe Home Security is offering my listeners their best deal of the year!