Smart home technology is becoming increasingly popular, particularly tech that aims to make our homes safer. But as more of us begin to hook control of our homes up to the internet for constant smartphone access, homeowners are incurring new risks – specifically hacker attacks.
In order to truly secure our homes today, we need to approach the process with caution and intelligence – embracing home protection strategies that include both digital and traditional measures. Failing this, many homeowners will find themselves lulled into a false sense of security by high tech devices.
Securing Your Entrances
Front doors, back doors, and even garage doors are all prime points of access for burglars and your entrances should be the first areas addressed when setting up a comprehensive security system. That’s why it should come as no surprise that smart locks ranked among the most desirable smart home technologies in a recent consumer survey.
Smart locks update the traditional lock with its internal tumblers meant to match key imprints by requiring digital codes, passcards, or other high tech tools. The idea is that these high tech solutions are more difficult to break through than a tumbler lock, since traditional lock picking tools are useless when there’s no keyed entry.
Worried you forgot to close your garage door after leaving the house? An app connected to the Ryobi – an advanced garage door featuring an array of plug and play options – can tell you if the door is open and can close the door from wherever you are. This is a much better garage door safety option than removing the emergency release cord, a protection installed to prevent children from being crushed by a closing door.
Eyes On The Inside
Another smart home option that works double-duty is the remote pet sitter. Ever wonder what your pet does when you’re away? Remote pet sitters connect to your WiFi and use in-home cameras, offering live feed straight to your phone. Those cameras double as eyes on your home when you’re away, letting you check in if you start feeling anxious about your home security.
Due to be away on a long vacation or business trip? By pairing direct video contact with smart security systems, homeowners can mimic in-home practices, even when away. Home security systems today can turn lights on and off, turn on your television, and even send alerts if someone rings your doorbell. By programming these systems to imitate your usual habits, burglars have a harder time determining if you’re at home.
Security Central
Ultimately, you can install all of the smart home devices on the market, but they won’t protect your home if you aren’t cautious with your home network. Unsecure home internet networks allow hackers to easily access your security systems and breach all of those protections.
In fact, it’s important to set up all the security features on even the most mundane smart home appliances. When a hacker accesses seemingly harmless information, like your smart thermostat settings, they can use that information to determine when you’re away. This is the real risk of smart technology.
To really commit to using smart technology, you have to also commit to rigorous internet security, using strong passwords, changing them frequently, and fully securing all of your devices.
Finally, be sure to examine the physical safety of your home – if your front door has a smart lock but no deadbolt, a smart lock may not be enough. Take all the steps you would ordinarily take and consider smart technology an enhancement.
Then, you’ll have a truly smart home.
