Equipping your home with a personal CCTV camera can be extremely useful for a wide variety of reasons, ranging from deterring criminal activity to catching the culprits red-handed.

However, it can also act as an avenue for capturing the weird, the wonderful and the unexplained and commonly crops up in the news across the world for its ability to

Weird, Wonderful and Unexplained

While there are literally hundreds of examples of amazing home security footage the world over, ranging from chilling ghost sightings to attempted burglaries gone awry, we’ve picked a small handful of the best light-hearted examples of what goes on when the red light is showing.

The Weird: Taste Test

The electric doorbell has been a useful addition to home technology worldwide since its invention way back in the early 1900s. That being said, one use the humble doorbell isn’t famed for is its taste.

However, it seems nobody told Roberto Daniel Arroyo that fact and the California resident decided to put it to the test one winter evening.

In January 2019, Arroya was caught on a home security camera licking a doorbell of a local neighbourhood home… for three hours, no less.

Following the bizarre incident, Arroyo was charged with loitering while the moreish doorbell was thoroughly disinfected and presumably offered counselling.

Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFJy2gFQgF8

The Wonderful: Ludwig Van Beartoven

A family in Colorado returned home from a weekend away to find that their house had been broken into. However, upon closer inspection, the security footage told a far grizzlier tale…

Home cameras had recorded the whole incident, which showed that their house had in fact been visited by a wild bear.

The large black bear was seen prowling around the house throughout the video, nosing around the living room and other areas.

Luckily, the placid character refrained from exercising his right to bear arms and damage was kept to the bear minimum.

I did, however, stop to have a quick play on the piano during his brief stay.

The Unexplained: Creature of the Night

In June 2019, Vivian Gomez made a spell-binding discovery when viewing her own home security camera one Sunday morning.

The video, taken the night before, seemed to show a bizarre creature strutting down the driveway, performing a chicken dance.

Gomez made her weird home security footage public when she posted it on Facebook and it didn’t take long for the clip to go viral.

Many watching the video liken the creature’s appearance and movements to that of Dobby the house-elf from Harry Potter.

Meanwhile, others have taken a far less imaginative approach to the fantastical beast and chalk it up to her young son goofing around with pants on his head.

Either way, it remains a bizarre and disturbing sight!

CCTV from IDS Security

While CCTV can undoubtedly be great for recording cool and unusual sights that would have otherwise gone by unseen, it’s worth remembering that they are primarily designed as a security feature to keep you, your family and your home safe.

At IDS Security, we offer a variety of security camera solutions for your property, ranging from conventional CCTV cameras to high-tech digital IP cameras, all of which can be tailored for your home and personal requirements.

With IDS Security, your home is in safe hands. Our state-of-the-art products, coupled with the expert knowledge of our experienced team of staff, makes for a winning combination that gives you true peace of mind, wherever you are.

If you are interested in finding out more about CCTV cameras for your home or any other method of home security at IDS, why not drop us a line today? Call now on 029 20 753 251 or get in touch online by clicking the button below.

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It’s no secret that most offices will be shut between Christmas Eve and Boxing Day, while many businesses will remain shut all the way through until January 2^nd.

While this is great news for workers, it’s also great news for burglars as well, posing the perfect opportunity to strike while the iron is hot…or, more accurately, absent.

Christmas may be a time of giving but, for burglars across the country, it’s most certainly a perfect time for taking too – particularly if business security it lax.

Avoid returning to work for a New Year’s disaster by following this handy guide on how to safeguard the office when shutting down for Christmas.

Christmas Office Safety Tips

Shutdown Before Lockdown

As the office will likely remain uninhabited for several days, it’s important to not only protect your premises for risk of break-in but also risk of fire.

Naturally, the first port of call for fire prevention is to ensure all non-essential electrical items are appropriately turned off; including computers, festive decorations, etc.

You may also wish to turn the water off at the mains as an added precaution, to avoid any leaking pipes causing additional issues.

Conversely, you may want to set your heating systems to come on intermittently via a timer during the holiday to avoid any pipe issues, such as freezing.

Knowledge is Power

If you aren’t going to be the one to lock-up your work premises on the final day before the office holiday, it’s absolutely vital that the person tasked with doing so is clued up.

It goes without saying that the person given this responsibility will need to be reliable and trustworthy. However, that same person will also need to be briefed ahead of time.

Ensure the individual chosen to close up shop on your final working day is given a full run-down of the locking-up procedure in advance of the last day.

This will allow them time to: A. Get their head around the process; B. Ask any questions on anything they are unsure of; and C. Have a trial run if necessary.

Be Wary of Strangers

Christmastime brings with it an increase in deliveries, particularly if you allow your workers to get their personal effects and gifts items delivered to the office.

However, the increase in deliveries can also bring with it additional personnel on-site, many of whom you may not be familiar with. If so, be sure to exercise caution.

Allowing unfamiliar individuals on to your premises or, worse still, into your workspace can inadvertently gift them with valuable site information.

This can range from general layout and insight into entry routes to potentially even provision of security details and passwords.

Team Effort

Due to the nature of seasonal office closures, it’s not unusual for people to work late on the last day to get work wrapped up like the Christmas presents to come.

However, this can often lead to low numbers come closing time and can commonly leave the duties of locking up to a solitary member of the team.

Leaving a single worker to lock up prior to the Christmas holiday break can be a recipe for disaster and one that should be avoided at all costs.

Not only can holiday excitement lead to vital security measures being overlooked but the solitary nature of locking up alone also leaves the solo worker vulnerable to criminals.

Ensure there are at least two members of staff on hand for on the last day to provide your premises with safe and secure closure.

Christmas Lights

Turns out that the Christmas tree isn’t the only thing that benefits from a little bit of illumination during the festive period.

Ensuring the perimeter of your premises is well lit should be a high priority for any office manager or business owner.

Simply equipping your office entrance and site borders with lights can be an effective deterrent for thieves, increasing the chances of them being caught.

What’s more, it can also make it notably more difficult for potential thieves to survey your premises beforehand and considerably harder for them to go by undetected.

Office Safety with IDS Security

At IDS Security Systems, we know a thing or two about safeguarding businesses. In fact, we have been providing security solutions since 1996 and our experiences in that time make for good advice, particularly when it comes to business security.

In our experience, whether you’re a shop owner, an office manager or otherwise, there are certain security systems no business can afford to do without.

Check out this list of options currently available at IDS Security, designed to keep your business safe over Christmastime and running smooth all-year-round.

• CCTV Cameras

• Intruder Alarms

• Access Control Systems

• Security Barriers

• Fire Alarms 

For more advice on office security over Christmas and Christmas office safety tips, why not drop us a line today? Call now on 029 20 753 251 or get in touch online by clicking the button below.

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If Home Alone has taught us nothing else – and I think we can all agree that it’s taught us a lot – it’s that opportunistic criminals love nothing more than cashing in on Christmas, occasionally through hilarious, madcap means.

Sadly, most of us don’t have a Kevin McCallister on hand to fend off such yuletide looters, leaving your home very much alone and wide open to festive thievery.

Luckily, there are a few simple ways you can boost your Christmas home security this December…

Christmas Home Security Tips

Designed to ensure you and your family have a very merry Christmas that goes by without a hitch, here are our top Christmas home security tips for keeping burglars at bay and your home safe this festive season.

1. Don't Give Thieves a Window of Opportunity

A common mistake for many homeowners looking to deck their homely halls with outside Christmas lights is by feeding cables and extension leads through partially opened windows.

Naturally, this provides an effortless entryway for would-be burglars to gain access to the inside of your property. A Christmas home security fail - if you will!

In fact, it’s a literal glowing sign for any thief looking to go rockin’ robbing at Christmastime and a schoolboy error that should be avoided at all costs.

Where possible, opt for battery-powered and decorative illuminations to avoid any need for a plug-in power source altogether.

There are even solar-powered lights on the market if you want to kill two birds with one stone and give back to the environment at the same time.

If mains-powered decorations are all you have and the only option available, consider installing an outside electrical outlet to power your lights without needing to use the inside.

2. Get Rid of Gift Boxes Discreetly

With Christmas refuse collection notoriously disorganised and infrequent during the festive period, it’s not unusual for bags to mount up by the time collections are finally made.

In the case of recycling, this can leave you with a veritable shop window right outside your house, telling the entire street what now lies inside your house post-Xmas.

For passing burglars, this can be like watching The Generation Game, providing a glorified conveyor belt of boxes, packages and containers to whet their appetite.

To keep your contents protected, be sure to rip or fold up any boxes to obscure their previous contents, particularly those that housed something valuable, e.g. a games system or an iPad.

Better still, try to keep your recycling bags off the street and out of view until the night before collection to reduce the chances of a crafty criminal-turned-Columbo detecting what valuables you and your family had for Christmas.

3. Take Precautions If You're Vacating Your Property

Many of us will be looking to spend our Christmases with friends, family and loved ones at various points throughout the festive period. Naturally, this can and often will, involve leaving your property unattended in the process.

If you are going to be vacating your home for an extended period of time over Christmas, taking the appropriate precautions is vital when it comes to protecting your premises.

For extended absences, you may want to ask your neighbour to pick up any deliveries that may build up outside your door to make it less obvious.

Even if you only plan on staying elsewhere overnight, it’s well worth investing in a light switch timer to make it seem as though your house is occupied with periodic lighting.

A typical burglary takes less than ten minutes from start to finish and a good light switch timer can cost less than £30.00. If you can put a price on peace of mind, £30 is definitely a bargain.

4. Don't Leave Gifts In Full View

Gifts nestled safely under a Christmas tree is a given for most houses at Christmastime. However, that doesn’t mean you need to give the street a perfect view of your festive haul.

Leaving your presents in full view of the window – particularly when it comes to houses that back directly on to the street – allows burglars to size up your presents before Christmas has even arrived.

What’s more, once Christmas Day has come and gone, any expensive presents left in full view can leave would-be thieves salivating like a dog in a butcher’s window.

Simply drawing the curtains or placing such items out of obvious view is an easy way to remedy this, so be sure to get into the habit sooner rather than later.

Similarly, broadcasting the newest additions to your contents collection online via social media can also be a risky action. After all, how well do your really know your social media connections?

You could be advertising to the wrong crowd without even knowing it, so think twice before you post that status thanking your partner for the new 65” Smart TV that now sits proudly in your living room.

5. Ensure You Have Fire Safety Precautions In Place

Taking steps to deter thieves and keep your home secure from criminals isn’t the only way to keep your property safe at Christmastime – it’s also important to take fire precautions as well.

Christmas trees are a common offender when it comes to household fires at Christmastime, so keeping your tree away from open flames is a simple yet hugely effective way of reducing the risk of fire during the Christmas period.

Avoid placing your tree anywhere near a heating source, such as a fireplace or potentially flammable electric heater. Meanwhile, always refrain from lighting candles anywhere near your tree.

In addition to that, you may want to think about the tree lights as well. Old Christmas lights can pose a greater risk of catching fire and could see your festive fir light up in an altogether more dangerous way should a bulb blow.

Finally, be sure to switch your tree lights off whenever you leave the house and before you go to bed. Not only will it save you money on your electric bill, it also reduces the likelihood of a fire occurring in your absence.

So, there you have it: five great ways to boost your home security at Christmas. For more advice on how to keep your home secure at Christmas, why not drop us a line? Call now on 029 20 753 251 or get in touch online by clicking the button below.

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Tonight the trick or treaters will be out in force celebrating Halloween, and while this is a time for fun and fright, it's important to keep your home safe and free from pranksters! Here are a few ways you can protect your home from misbehaving monsters tonight...

Jack-O-Lanterns & Lights

While the friendly (or fearsome) faces of jack-o'-lanterns will let people know you're celebrating Halloween, you should also want to consider leaving your porch lights on for a few hours. Alternatively, fit your home with a motion sensor light that will automatically illuminate as passers-by head towards your home. Illuminating your home will deter unwanted visitors and vandals while also making it much easier to spot someone acting suspiciously!

Go for the Garage

Cars are such an easy target on Halloween, so, if you can, we recommend parking your car somewhere secure and out of sight. A garage or even a well-lit area can prevent you from waking up to a nasty new paint job courtesy of pranksters and their spray paint! Consider moving your car to a neighbour's driveway or garage if you don't have one yourself.

Opt for Flameless Candles

With so many people walking around your home, it's very likely that one of your pumpkins could be knocked or kicked over. When you use real candles, there's a possibility of a fire! Why not choose flameless candles instead? They will keep your home safe without putting a dampener on your devilish decorations!

Snap Some Shots

Before the sun sets, take some pictures around your home. this will help you prove if any vandals have de-faced your home in the morning! Better yet, use your CCTV system to keep a close eye on the events of the evening. You can kick back, relax and watch a scary movie in peace knowing that your property is safe and secure!

If you want any more advice about keeping your home safe tonight, or if you want to improve your home security for the future, give our advisors a call on 029 20 753 251.

On Sunday 27th October the clocks go back, which means it's time to update your home security routine. When the dark nights draw in, there's often an influx of house robberies and car thefts as criminals take advantage of the earlier dusk.

Securing your possessions is of utmost importance at this time of year. Many of us are starting our Christmas shopping, and nothing screams 'easy target' to a criminal more than the brand new PlayStation you've haphazardly left in the boot of your car. Taking a little extra time to make sure your home and vehicles aren't vulnerable can make all the difference, but this isn't the only step you should take. Let's dive into some other important precautions...

Light it Up

A great way to give the illusion that someone is home is by leaving a couple of lights on around the house. Worried about your energy bills? Try plugging your lamps into timer switches or switch to energy-efficient bulbs.

Similarly, pick a parking spot that's in a well-lit area rather than parking your car in the shadows. Burglars are far more likely to target cars in secluded side streets! You could even add external lighting to your home or driveway to keep these areas safe and sound. 

Lock and Check

Make sure easily accessible windows, doors and gates are locked before you head out. Taking five minutes to whip around your house and garden to double-check everything is secure will save you days of stress and heartache when you come home to a house that's been ravaged by burglars. 

Keep an Eye

For an added layer of security, why not consider adding CCTV inside or outside your home? Speak to our advisors about adding CCTV that can be remotely accessed from your mobile phone wherever you are. Even if you're working late one night or visiting a Christmas market, you'll be able to keep a close eye on your home & belongings! 

Intruder Alert!!

A great alternative to a CCTV camera is an intruder alarm. We offer intruder alarms with 24/7 monitoring packages, so if someone did attempt a break-in, we'd be on the case immediately. Concerned the police wouldn't get there in time? We use the latest digital signalling equipment to make sure the relevant emergency service units are contacted automatically if an incident was to occur. 

If you'd like to speak to a member of the IDS team about improving your home security before winter truly takes hold, get in touch! 

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