College Safety Tips You Should know!

Going off to college can be a fun and exciting time for many young adults.  However, this is not the time to throw common sense, and caution to the wind. There are still a few people on and off campus who are up to no good.  We have compiled this list of safety tips for you and your offspring to know!

Campus safety tips: While walking around on campus

• Pay Attention to your surroundings!
• Many Colleges have alarms and phones stationed around campus -learn where they are in case of trouble or you don’t feel safe.
•  Survey the campus after dark to see that buildings, walkways, quadrangles and parking lots are adequately secured, lighted and patrolled.
• Avoid walking alone if possible – consider using your campus escort service. Get the contact information and save it on your phone.
• Make it a habit to check in with family and friends.
• Walk with an air of confidence and stay alert.
• Walk in well-lighted areas.
• Keep your hand free, not overloaded. (is stay off your phone)
• Avoid Texting and walking, and use a blue-tooth when on your cell phone
• ALWAYS carry your keys ready, we recommend having a key ring self-defense product. Have it in hand, ready to go if in questionable areas.
• If you are being followed: cross the street, scream, run to an occupied residence or store, or flag down a car.
• If your college offers a RAD program…take it every semester.
• If you see something, say something- Report suspicious activities or individuals

At dorm rooms or apartment

• Doors and windows to your residence hall should be equipped with quality locks.
• Room doors should have peepholes in the door and deadbolts locks.
• Keep blinds and curtains closed while changing clothes
• Do not loan out your keys (it doesn’t take long to make duplicates).
• If you lose your apt/room key replace locks immediately.
• Never compromise your safety for a roommate or friend who wants the door left unlocked.
• Keep valuable personal items and documents locked away
• Replace locks when a key is lost or stolen.
• Use caution to admit strangers to your room, even if it is your date!.
• Have good lighting around entrances.
• Be sure all doors and windows are locked when leaving room or apartment
• If you are a woman and live alone or with other women, use only your first initials
• on your mailbox and, when possible, in phone directories.
• Report suspicious activity to campus police—or to the police if you live off campus.
• consider purchasing a room door alarm

While in your car

• Keep windows up and doors locked.
• Be sure someone knows where you are going and when you should be back
• Park in well-lighted areas and travel on populated, well-lighted streets.
• Never pick up hitchhikers.
• If you have car trouble, a signal for help by raising the hood or tying a white handkerchief to the door handle.
• It is wise to have a car Emergency kit

Social Media –

• Don’t accept people you really don’t know as friends
• Set all your settings to private.
• enable multi-factor authentication

Parties or other Social Events

• Alcohol & Drugs: Be STRONG. Don’t cave to temptation and peer pressure. Know your limits when drinking.
• Do not accept drinks from someone you don’t know. It could have date rape drugs in it. Keep drinks in your hands at all times. NEVER mix drugs and alcohol.
• Don’t drink and drive.
• When dating be sure someone you know and trust knows where you’re going and what time you plan on being home. Have a 911 code you can quickly text your trusted friend. Share your location with that trusted friend.

Traveling Off Campus

• Travel with a buddy/ groups.
• Be very familiar with the good and bad parts of the surrounding area.
• If approached by a stranger asking for time or directions: keep your distance and stride. Don’t be distracted. Be aware. Trust your instincts. Avoidance is always a safe bet.
• Have your Pepper Spray handy
•  Attackers look for those who appear to present the least amount of resistance.
• Avoid headphones. Stay off the texting, games and social media while walking and or jogging.
• Avoid late night ATM’s and shopping.
• Travel and park in familiar, populated and well-lit areas.
• If attacked. Yell. Scream. Run. Remember STRIKE the target primary target areas: eyes, nose, groin. Strikes: Palm, fingers, thumbs, elbows, knees, kicks.

Defense Against Crime provides you with the best information to meet the security needs of you, your family members or your business, by assisting anyone who is unwilling to become a victim of crime.  If you want to take personal responsibility for protection, home security, business security, purchase high-quality self-defense products kits and arm yourself with the knowledge about self-defense and security products and information of the best way to stay secure in an ever-increasing violent world. In today’s society, being equipped mentally and physically is no longer an option. –
Victor Swindell, Onyx Knight Enterprises

Would you fall for this e-mail?

I received this e-mail today

U.S. Bank 
1025 Connecticut Ave. NW, Ste. 510. Washington, DC 20036
SWIFT (US): USBKUS44XXX
Founded: United States of America
Hours: Open 24 Hours 




Attention: Good Day.




This message is to inform you that the U.S Government has instructed us to
remit the sum of $2. Million US dollar into your account, the reason for
this is because your name was among the scam victims that lost a lot of
money to African and European Fraudsters, you are hereby advised to
without delay stop all you have going on between you and anybody on
INTERNET because you will end up at nothing, hence, it was concluded that
your FUNDS has to be remitted to you in two manners, as the one that best
suites you, the 2 options are:


1. BANK TO BANK SWIFT TELEGRAPHIC WIRE TRANSFER.
2. BY ATM CARD PAYMENT



We are waiting your immediate response with your information's and payment
option to enable this bank proceeds immediately with the transfer of your
fund and serve you better details required are:

Your Full Name:
Your Full Home Address:
Valid Phone Number:
Sex:
Age:
Occupation:
Valid ID Attached:


Do not send money up front fee to anyone from Europe or African again for
what so ever reason. The US bank will immediately remit your account once I
reconfirm your banking details.




Congratulations.
Mr. Rick Ruzzi
Executive Region Manager
USBANK.

WARNING
------------------------------------------------------
You are to keep the details all of your information confidential and avoid
informing anyone of it until we have successfully moved the fund to your
location. This is accordance with our security measure to avoid miss-claim
and prevent impostor/fraud.

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in the world. The 2016 Identity Fraud Study, released by Javelin Strategy & Research, found that $15 billion was stolen from 13.1 million U.S. consumers in 2015, compared with $16 billion and 12.7 million victims a year earlier.

One of the reasons what criminals have an easy access to your private information is because they count greed, desperation or ignorance to get you to provide you all the pieces they need.

You will note that in the above they dint’ ask for my social or my birthday.  Chances are they think they may already have it.  As a matter of fact the birthday that I have on many social media account is NOT my birthday, just for this purpose. One of the best ways to have a fake birthday is to choose an non important events historical like  2/28/83  (last Episode of MASH) if you are young, or Nov 23, 1963 (Kennedy Assassination or filming of Gilligan’s Island), or Sept 8, 1966 (Premere of Star Trek). I think you can get the general idea.  Don’t post the city your really live in , use one that is next to you.  Don’t put down Chicago IL, put down Lake Bluff, IL.   Create a fake Internet persona for some of your internet activity.

Other things you can do.

• Secure your social security number. You have been warned not to carry your social security card in your wallet or write your number on your checks. Only give out your social security number (SSN) when absolutely necessary. and honestly, you don’t have to give it to anyone but an employer.
• Leave nothing of value in your parked car to tempt identity thieves. This means your wallet, laptop and mobile device.
• Don’t respond to unsolicited requests for personal information (your name, birth date, social security number, or bank account number) by phone, mail, or online. Just like what the e-mail was requesting.
• Watch out for “shoulder surfers.” Shield the keypad when typing your passwords or PINS on computers and at ATMs.
• When using a Debit card..select CREDIT. You have more protection.
• Collect mail promptly. Ask the post office to put your mail on hold when you are away from home.
• Pay attention to your billing cycles. If bills or financial statements are late, contact the sender.
• Review your receipts. Ask for carbon copies and incorrect charge slips as well. Promptly compare receipts with account statements. Watch for unauthorized transactions.
• Shred receipts, credit offers, account statements, and expired cards, to prevent “dumpster divers” from getting your personal information. Use a micro-cut shredder.
• Secure your smartphone with a password. A recent survey found that more than a quarter of adults with smartphones fail to protect them with a password. When you set your password, avoid those that would be easy to guess, like birthdates, kids’ names, pet names or numbers in a sequence (1,2,3,4).
• Use a gel pen to write out checks. Mail thieves can wash off ballpoint pen and rewrite the check.
• Use strong passwords to protect financial accounts. Consider a passphrase rather than just a passcode or password.

As I said one of the reasons that Identity Theft is successful, isn’t because they have to go thru your garbage to get your information, they can just look at what info you have on your Facebook profile. So just be careful how much information you give.

 

AND DON’T FALL FOR THE TRAP FREE MONEY!

PepperEyes Self-Defense, Safety and Security Store is dedicated to providing you with the best and most affordable self-defense products, survival and safety products on the market to meet the security needs of you, your family members or your business, by assisting anyone who is unwilling to become a victim of crime.  If you want to take personal responsibility for protection, home security, business security, purchase our high quality discount self-defense products. Survival kits  and arm yourself with the knowledge about self-defense and security products and information of the best way to stay secure in an ever-increasing violent world. In today’s society, being equipped mentally and physically is no longer an option.

Training and Practicing with your Pepper Spray

So you’ve gotten some pepper spray. Awesome!  Do you know how to use it?  Yea, it simple just point and spray it at the bad guys.  Sounds easy?  Right.

Try this -carry your pepper spray like you normally would.  Are you going to put it in your purse? Are you going to clip it onto your purse? Are you going to have it on your key ring?   Now how quickly can you access, aim and shoot your pepper spray.  How easy was it? How much time did you take.  Have a friend try to grab you (but please don’t spray your friend).
This is very important, you will only have a few seconds.  How did you do?  Practicing Self Defense is very important. Remember all those clips of reliable Barney Fife on the Andy Griffith Show practicing his quick draw? While it was always funny as it would often shot before he got it out of the holster, at least he was practicing. What are you? Are you practicing, or do you just take it for granted that you’ll be able to handle it.

You should experiment and develop monthly practice drills regardless of how and where you choose to carry your pepper spray.  You may find that some places are not better than others.  For example having your pepper spray in your purse near your tissue, comb, brush lip stick and wallet is usually a bad idea. You should select to have it in a place where you can easily get access to it.

Think about different scenarios as you are walking, riding, jogging, using mass transit or just standing. Whenever you are on foot, such as walking to your car, leaving the dorm, out shopping – anytime you’re alone or isolated – you should have the spray in hand and ready to instantly use. The time you recognize the threat and bring your pepper spray into action should be less than a second.

You should create practice drills to perform every month, so that you don’t get lack or rusty, because crime never does.  When your pepper spray get about two years old, use it to test spraying your pepper spray at different targets. This can also prepare you for what it could possible smell like.  PepperEyes.com recommends replacing your pepper spray every two to three years.

Many, criminals play out their crimes in their heads, you need to be prepared for their plans…with plans of your own.

PepperEyes Self-Defense, Safety and Security Store is dedicated to providing you with the best and most affordable self-defense products, survival and safety products on the market to meet the security needs of you, your family members or your business, by assisting anyone who is unwilling to become a victim of crime.  If you want to take personal responsibility for protection, home security, business security, purchase our high quality discount self-defense products. Survival kits and arm yourself with the knowledge about self-defense and security products and information of the best way to stay secure in an ever-increasing violent world. In today’s society, being equipped mentally and physically is no longer an option. PepperEyes.com is a division of Onyx Knight Enterprises.

 

Thieves Caught on Camera

If you do a search on the internet on home burglaries caught on camera you may get a shock.  Try to wrap your mind around these statistics from the US Department of Justice. n estimated 3.7 million household burglaries occurred each year on average from 2003 to 2007. In about 28% of these burglaries, a household member was present during the burglary. In 7% of all household burglaries, a household member experienced some form of violent victimization,

Last week, in a subdivision not too far from me, two home break-in incidents were recorded on the home security camera of the homeowners.

In one incident, the surveillance camera shows one suspect walking up to the door with a clipboard as if he was going to sell something. The video showed that he had a sales pen as if he was a salesperson. The suspect knocked on the door a couple times. Nobody answered. He looked around, looked right at the camera right here, and then you see him ducking and looking through the window.”

The video also shows the alleged salesperson leave the residence. Less than one minute later, you see another suspect creeping through the backyard on a different camera.  This suspect goes to the back door, he breaks out the window, does not open the door, but climbs through the window.

The homeowner arrived home later in the day and noticed that the gate to her back yard was open. Upon entering her home, she noticed the back door had been shattered.

An interior surveillance video shows the family cat, Leo, run away as the man who broke-in walks up the steps and into the master bedroom.

The suspect took lots of valuable jewelry and then climbed back out the window.

The video footage shows the suspect squat low, gets on his walkie-talkie or phone and is telling the guy, I’m done, come and get me.”

In another incident, a homeowner came home and felt something wasn’t right. So we rewound the video on his hidden interior camera and saw a burglar open a window, go directly to his bed room and leave a minute later with a pillow case containing his haul.

Remember those statistics from above. How close are robberies from you.  Over the past few years some sub divisions have seen a rash of burglaries for thieves who have surveyed the subdivisions they are going to hit.  If you want to reduce your chances of being a target then please look at some of our other blog entries on things you can do to beef up your home security.

While I do recommend real video camera as part of your home security countermeasures, we also would recommend that you have some type of audible alarm system on all your doors and windows, along with security stickers that warn would be thieves.  We also recommend that your interior camera have a motion detection system that will either activate your alarm system or send your notification if motion is detected in your home. Some alarm system companies can configure your system so that small animals like cats or small dogs will not trip your alarm system. This was you will know within a few moments if someone is in your residence when you are not home.

For those that want a good security system without the expense of a costly monthly fee, there are motion detection camera that you can purchase that have these features.  If you are interested in such a camera system then please check out the these products available from PepperEyes.com

HOME INVASIONS – Part 1 – What you should know.

HOME INVASIONS – Part 2 – Defensive strategies (ii)

The Home-Breakin ..what would you do?

 

 

PepperEyes Self-Defense, Safety and Security Store is dedicated to providing you with the best and most affordable self-defense products, survival and safety products on the market to meet the security needs of you, your family members or your business, by assisting anyone who is unwilling to become a victim of crime.  If you want to take personal responsibility for protection, home security, business security, purchase our high quality discount self-defense products. Survival kits  and arm yourself with the knowledge about self-defense and security products and information of the best way to stay secure in an ever-increasing violent world. In today’s society, being equipped mentally and physically is no longer an option. – Victor Swindell

The Microsoft Support Phone Scam.Again!

The Microsoft Support Phone Scam

Yesterday at work my cell phone rang.  The call number was (646) 612-3456.  I answered the call, and it was from an automated message claiming to be from Microsoft Technical Support.  The cal claimed that there was something wrong with my home computer, and firewall and it was bad news for my computer… some sounding like forty years of darkness! Earthquakes, volcanoes, bad checks,  my kids and grandkids would move back home, my bank account would be emptied, the dead would rise from the grave…

They ask me to hit 9 for Microsoft support to fix it  So…I Did..and they still claim to be

Now the lady at a thick foreign accent, and was obviously in a room full of other people making similar calls from the background noise.

I knew this was a scam, and told her that my computer was Commodore Amiga.  She apologized and hung up.

This is a very old scam, and I get about two of these every year.

Microsoft has a link on their site to help you understand and deal with this computer scam.  I

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/safety/online-privacy/avoid-phone-scams.aspx

Now here are some fun things you can do

• Repeat everything they say to you, back to them, real slow and wrong
• Pretend to go along, but ask a question, like what is a mouse, or where is the ‘E’ key.
• If they ask for personal information, ask for their personal information, and just pretend to be one of the Simpsons or Jethro Clampett
• Tell them you are with the Federal Task Force on Cybercrime, and agents are on their way to arrest them. They are to put their hands up and prepare to be arrested.
• Makeup something fun to do.

Defense Against Crime provides you with the best information to meet the security needs of you, your family members or your business, by assisting anyone who is unwilling to become a victim of crime.  If you want to take personal responsibility for protection, home security, business security, purchase high-quality self-defense products kits and arm yourself with the knowledge about self-defense and security products and information of the best way to stay secure in an ever-increasing violent world. In today’s society, being equipped mentally and physically is no longer an option. –
Victor Swindell, Onyx Knight Enterprises