Lock Down Your Home Office
 By Alex R. Merriman

When you conduct business from a home office, you need to be doubly sure that you’re secure. After all, you have two big assets to protect: your home and your office.

It would be awful enough if the bad guys broke into your home. But imagine if the thieves also made off with your business equipment, documents, financial records and more.

Don’t take any chances. Lock down your home office. Try these 13 tips.

1. Use deadbolts
Install deadbolt locks on all exterior doors in your house. Remember to also secure the door leading to your garage. For added safety, install a deadbolt on the interior door of your home office.

2. Lock office windows
Add extra security by using toggle or key locks on the windows. You can even put a length of study wood or strip of metal in the window tracks so burglars can’t pry open the windows.

3. Secure sliding doors
Use a similar security method for sliding glass doors. Lock them. And use a metal bar to so no one can pry the door open.

4. Hide your equipment
Natural light is a plus in a home office. But keep your business private. Locate your computer and other equipment away from windows so they can’t be seen by passersby. At night, and anytime you’re away from the home office, pull the window shades or close the blinds.

5. Get an alarm system
Install an alarm system in your home. Then advertise it with signs that state you have a security system. Place signs at the front and back of your house as well as at fence gates. You can opt for a wired or wireless system. For the best security, have the system installed by a professional alarm company.

6. Fence them out
Install locks on all fence gates.

7. Protect windows
Thieves hate thorny bushes. So, plant thick hedges full of thorns around your windows to discourage break-ins.

8. Light up the place
Thieves like the dark. So, install outdoor lighting. You can use lights with motion detectors or lights that automatically come on from dusk to dawn. Light up doorways, fence gates, driveways and windows in shadowy areas.

9. Hide your garage door opener
Most people keep garage door openers in their vehicles. If you park in your drive, thieves can easily break into your vehicle, grab the opener and use it to gain access to the garage. Take the opener inside with you.

10. Secure the second story
Don’t get complacent if your home office is located on the second story of your house. Follow the tips for locking windows and doors. As an added precaution, make sure tree limbs are trimmed away from windows. Thieves have been known to climb trees in search of a way into a home. Also, don’t leave ladders stored outside your house. That’s an invitation for burglars to climb right in a second-story window.

11. Protect your mail
If you have business mail delivered to your home office, gather it quickly. Don’t leave bills and correspondence sitting unattended in the mailbox. Thieves who steal mail could gain access to financial account numbers and other sensitive information. The same holds true for packages delivered to your door. As an alternative, rent a U.S. post office box or a personal mail box for mail delivery.

12. Leave a light on
When you’re away from your home office at night, don’t turn the lights out. Install light timers so lamps go on and off at different times.

13. Make some noise
Leave a radio or television on if you’re out of the home office. Make sure the volume is turned high enough to be heard outside by anyone coming close to the house.

(Posted August 2007)

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