These Smart Home Devices Can Help You Keep Your Home Safe

Smart homes are becoming smarter all the time. From intelligent lighting systems to talking fridges, the dream of living in a high tech home from the future is rapidly becoming a reality. Here are some ways you can improve your smart home to be able to protect your assets and your family.

Keep it simple: Security cameras

The first vanguard of tech safety, the security camera, is still improving. The Nest outdoor camera boasts easy installation and smart alerts that can tell you when suspicious activity is occurring outside your door. Cameras are a strong deterrent against criminals who don't want to get caught, but they can also help identify anyone who breaks in or approaches your home to the police. The data is all stored digitally, so there is no way to destroy the information.

Outdoor cameras can put you at ease, and not all of them carry the $200 price tag of the Nest. Most will be perfectly weatherproof and easy to notice but difficult to remove. Indoor cameras can be used easily if you live in a small home or an apartment, or if outdoor cameras are not an option.

These cameras also have a serious number of other functions that can be integrated into your smart home for convenience and security alike. Cameras can use facial recognition to allow you into your home without having to go through the hassle of getting out your keys or putting in a security password. This is both convenient and much safer -- facial recognition software has become so advanced that it is very difficult to fool and your face can't be stolen from you like your keys or a password can. Netatmo has a similar setup and price tag as the Nest and has this neat new technology as well. 

Alarms for more than just break-ins

Security alarms used to be single faceted devices that would alert you and the police whenever so much as a window was opened without your permission. But with useful tools like LiveWatch, these security systems have gotten better at detecting burglars, harder to disable from the outside even with knowledge of the system, and now even better at detecting problems besides break-ins.

The security system allows owners to easily lock and unlock their home at any time, at any range. It also allows them to easily communicate with the police or one another in case of internet outages.

It can detect carbon monoxide leaks and fires and includes the aforementioned security cameras. These sensors can also have a range of other uses, such as alerting you to when it is raining or cold outside before you leave, saving you the trouble of having to go back inside once you have already gotten to your car. It can also warn you of severe adverse weather and perhaps convince you to stay indoors. It is an all-in-one security system dedicated to taking care of all of your needs.

Many of these systems, such as the Abode home security kit, boast the ability to be set up and maintained totally DIY. Do-it-yourself systems can be a huge relief for people who don't like the idea of a stranger having access to their security information, or for people who live so remotely that getting the installation done can be a pain. Being able to maintain the system easily is also very appealing to people who don't want to learn a complicated system in the first place.

Keep track of your important belongings

A personal favorite security device, the Spark Nano 5 GPS tracker allows you to keep tabs on very important objects in your life. This tracker can easily be used to pinpoint your car, laptop bag, or even a loved one. It's amazingly small and super powerful, guaranteed to help you find something that was lost or stolen.

This little device has a huge battery life and it can't be disabled by a thief. It's also easy to permanently attach it to objects like laptops that you want to keep safe. Its location can easily be traced and given to authorities so that they can find your stolen items.

The best function for the tracker, though, is not just to track an object but to make sure that it doesn't move at all. The tracker has the ability to intelligently notify the owner when the object it is attached to is going somewhere it shouldn't; say your car has suddenly started to move in a different direction than it normally does at a different time. The machine will help you figure out why this suspicious activity is occurring and put a stop to it immediately. 

Stay safe online as well as offline

In today's world, physical possessions are not the only things you need to take care of. Most of the world's money is stored digitally, and if you use the internet a lot of your personal data and information is stored on your computer. With that information, hackers can steal your identity, take money out of your bank accounts, commit fraud, and perform a significant number of awful things that will make your life very difficult. 

Gone are the days that a simple anti-virus software would be all that you needed to protect yourself from digital threats. These days, more advanced solutions are required. Apps like MyPermission and LastPass keep your passwords safe, but you may need more high tech solutions to protect everyone in your network against identity hijacking.

SEE ALSO: TOP 5 WAYS TO BETTER SECURE YOUR WEBSITE

XGen cyber securities offer a wide range of rapidly developing systems that are constantly being updated to deal with security threats in the 21st century. These systems protect you from viruses, hackers, and even give you stricter control over what data internet providers can learn about you while online. It is a significantly better tool than the internet safety programs we had in the past.