14 ms·

The neighborhood burglar liked this comment. https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/9x2dz/iama_retired_car_thief_and_commercialresidential/c0euhag/ https://www

• mc32 4y ago
  To be clear that burglar agrees that having lights helps against being targeted: "A dog. Well-lit exterior. Nosy neighbors. A car always parked in the driveway. Lights on in the house. Anything that would normally lead someone to believe that there is someone home."
  • destitude 4y ago
    Well lit exterior does not mean having to point the light into the sky however.
• II2II 4y ago
  It's probably safe to say the burglar would avoid homes that appear occupied by any measure. One of the older tricks in the books was to put indoor lamps on timers when you were planning to travel for a few weeks. It should also be noted that outdoor security lighting is a different beast from general purpose or decorative lighting. Most homes have very patchy exterior lighting, with either plenty of glare or plenty of shadows. If it is known the house isn't occupied, poor lighting will do little to prevent someone from crawling in a basement window then walking out the front door.
  • wpietri 4y ago
    A recommendation from neighborhood cops is things is a TV simulator, which is just a small box with LEDs that projects TV-like light. The notion is a burglar will think somebody is up late watching TV. Very low wattage and most of the light won't head skyward. Or if HNers' junk closets are anything like mine, an old monitor and a looping video playlist would do about as well.