Halloween safety tips: Don’t get spooked out

Today is Halloween and many suburbs will be planning their Halloween festivities.

Halloween is a night for pranks and tricks but unfortunately some people are not wearing masks for fun and they are not going door to door in search of candy.

ADT Security cautions all residents to ensure they keep their family and home safe, whether they are out collecting candy, or just staying at home.

Halloween safety tips outside the home:

As fun as Halloween can be, there are some very real dangers lurking in wait for children. Here are some Halloween safety tips to keep you and yours safe this spooky night.

• Light up the night: Make your children easily visible with flashlights or glow sticks. Some restaurants and fast food places even give away transparent bags for candy that include a glow stick you can put inside the bag. This limits the amount of things your child has to carry, but allows you to easily view them.
• Always ensure children are accompanied by an adult or older sibling: Set a time limit for your children to “trick-or-treat”. Designate a specific route for them to take. It is advisable to never allow young children to trick or treat on their own. Be alert for any speeding cars in the suburb.
• Never allow children to enter a stranger’s house: There is no kind of candy that is worth a security risk so do not allow your children to enter a stranger’s home, no matter how appealing the offer or Halloween display.
• Watch what your children eat: Rather be cautious and do not allow your children to accept homemade or unwrapped treats.
• Host your own Halloween: If you want to be able to keep your home and children safe at the same time, consider having your own Halloween party. This will allow you to choose what your children get for Halloween and who they are mixing with. But remember that your home can be a target too if perpetrators perceive that you are not paying attention to your surroundings. While celebrating, having a braai or halloweening, always keep your remote panic with you, ensure your perimeter is secure and do not let strangers into your home.

Protect your home while you are out:

•  Arm your security system: The excitement of getting ready for Halloween plans may make us forget to take simple safety precautions. Make sure to arm your security system and lock doors and windows before you leave your home.
• Light Up Your Home: Whether or not you have plans to go out on Halloween night, be sure to keep your home well lit. Turn on a few lights around your home to give the impression that someone is home and still awake. Additionally, well-lit areas outside your home will deter potential intruders or malicious pranksters by eliminating hiding places caused by shadows.
• Adjust your security camera settings: If you have security cameras, you may want to adjust the areas that they are focused on. For instance, you might want to keep cameras on the doors and windows, but you also might want to put some focus on the streets around your house so that if any pranks are pulled, you can see where they came from and maybe even see who did them.

Cellphones are for security:

• Cellphones are great for keeping you secure when you are out of the house. If your child does not have a cell phone and you are not the one taking him or her trick-or-treating, allow your child to borrow your phone.
• Check the charge: If your child has a cellphone, make sure it is fully charged. You might also want to make sure that he or she is in an area with good signal reception. Also if you have a security app you can track where the children are.
• Check your security system on a regular basis: If you have a home automation system, you can check in on your security system on Halloween from your phone.

Information courtesy of ADT.

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