Every time you open the door of your home or apartment pay attention and look around to check that there are no strangers wandering around. In case of doubt, always call the police. If you arrive home and find your door is open or forced, do not come in, call the police immediately. When leaving home, make use of all the possible security tips, it takes just a few minutes. Never keep signed checks in your wallet and keep valuable items and cash in a safe place.
To protect your children, teach them the basic deails they may need in case of emergency, such as full name, address and phone number. Warn them on the dangers of opening the door or giving information to strangers. Explain that they must never accept anything from people they do not know, such as sweets, candies, toys or any other gift. Of course, they must never get into strangers cars. Teach them how to act in emergency situations if there are stragne people around home, how to contact emergency numbers, etc.
Talk about the importance of not telling strangers that their parents are not at home, they must always say that they can not open the door or answer the phone at that moment. They should learn how to dial emergency or relatives phone numbers. If you live in a home, check that your house number is always visible, during the day and at night so that police do not waste time looking for you in case of emergency.
Your home must be always well lighted, particularly in the outdoors. Try to avoid having dark areas where robbers can hide. If you have trees, keep them at a reasonable height, so that strangers can not use them to hide. It is also important that you open and close gates as fast as possible. In the case of automatic gates, always make sure they are completely closed before getting out of the vehicle.
If you live in an apartment ask security people to prevent people from getting into unless you authorise them to. Do not open the door before knowing who is behind the door and put a double lock, give your keys to people you know very well. Even if you live in an apartment, close the windows when you leave your home, specially those that connect directly to balconies.