Crime Prevention Newsletter, Nov 2013

Crime Prevention During The Holidays

General Precautions

Be ALERT and AWARE of your surroundings. Beware of strangers approaching you for any reason. At this time of
year, "con-artists" may try various methods of distracting you with the intention of taking your money or belongings. Pay attention to who is around you and what activities are happening. Dont leave the safety of a building or your vehicle until you have ensured all is secure and safe. Trust your instincts; if you feel uncomfortable with a place or person(s), get away! It is not unusual around the holidays to have robbery teams consisting of a driver, a person who snatches the valuables, and a person with a stun gun, who pushes, strikes, or knocks down the victim. Be cautious of being knocked down or pushed by one person while another steals purse or wallet, packages, etc.

Precautions in Parking Lots

Always park where there is plenty of light, not only around your car,
but also from your car to the mall or store entrance.

Once your car is parked, familiarize yourself with its location so you
can find it without delay.

Use the trunk of your car to keep your packages out of sight. Minimize the number of valuables
left in your vehicle and keep valuables, electronics (including cell phones and DVDs), gifts and other theft attractors out of sight. Don't hesitate to ask for a security escort if you feel unsafe.

Remember to lock your vehicle. Have your keys out and ready when you return to your vehicle.

Precautions when Shopping

Try to shop when the mall is less crowded -- during the weekday, or at night when malls stay
open late for holiday shoppers. Avoid the weekend rush, when it's easy to lose children among crowds. Protect your purse or wallet and clean out any unnecessary items before leaving home.

 If you use pockets, place your checkbook, cash, or credit cards in your front pockets. Only bring
one or two credit cards and a limited amount of cash with you. Never leave your purse, wallet or cell phone unattended in a public place. Avoid carrying your checkbook, cash, and credit cards all together in one wallet, because a thief who gets the whole package together can cash checks with your identification and run up a large credit card bill in a short amount of time. Keep your keys separate, too. Don't "flash" large rolls of money in public. You never know who's watching! Spread your money around in different pockets. That way a pickpocket can't clean you out in one fell swoop. Avoid wearing expensive jewelry. Dress casually and comfortably. Don't dangle your handbag from your shoulder. You are creating a perfect setup for a pursesnatcher. Instead, keep your purse tucked tightly under your arm, or better yet, don't even carry a purse. Wear a fanny pack facing the front instead. Besides allowing your hands to be free to hold onto or carry your child, youll eliminate the possibility of leaving your purse behind or having it stolen. Dont overburden yourself with packages while shopping. Consolidate as many packages as possible, or make several trips to your car to deposit packages in the trunk. Don't allow yourself to become so burdened down with packages that you become a tempting target. Avoid carrying large, heavy packages that block your vision and make you a target for purse-snatchers. Shop with a buddy there is safety in numbers.

Precautions when using ATM machines

Use them in populated places and be constantly paying attention to whats going
on around you. Try to go during the daylight hours. If you must go at night, pick a machine that is well lit and visible to passing traffic. If anyone is lurking near the machine, pass it up and find another. Watch for unauthorized modifications to the machine and report anything suspicious.

Precautions when At Home

Make sure all doors and windows have secondary locks (window pins,
deadbolts, dowels, etc.) and use them!

Close your blinds so that burglars cant see into your residence. Place gifts where they cant be seen from the outside. Consider covering your garage door windows so a burglar cant see
that no cars are present (meaning no one is at home). Trimming your landscaping down to 3 feet for bushes and up 7 feet from the ground on trees (so the burglar is more likely to be seen). Ensure that dark areas and entrances have outdoor lights that are turned on after dark or that are activated by sensors. Dogs are an excellent deterrent - most burglars do not want to tangle with a dog.

 Avoid opening the door to strangers. Legitimate delivery people will be able to show
identification. If someone unexpectedly knocks on your door, do not open the door but do let them know you are home - if it is even remotely suspicious, call police immediately with a good description. Many burglars will knock first to see if anyone is home. When someone answers the door, theyll have some excuse to be there (ex. They are looking for someone else and have the wrong house, etc.). Be sure to mail cards with money, checks or gift certificates from the Post Office or a blue US Postal Service collection box.

Protecting Your Identity during the Holidays While consumers are focused on giving during the holidays, the crooks are focused on taking. Having your access to credit suspended or compromised during the largest shopping season of the year puts a damper on anyone's good cheer. The following tips can help you protect yourselves during the weeks ahead:

Have a constant awareness of your surroundings. The sidewalks and malls will be crowded, and shoppers will be distracted, the perfect combination for a pick-pocket. If someone bumps into you, don't assume it was an accident. Clutch your purse close to your side or in front of you, and keep your wallet hidden at the bottom, or for men, in an inside coat pocket. Don't carry large sums of cash. If you choose not to charge your purchases, using a debit card may be right for you. Be aware, however, that certain protections are put in place when you make a purchase with a credit card that are not provided with a debit card. This is a good time of year to call your credit card issuer and become familiar with that perk. Further, when you use a credit card, you can dispute a purchase before paying for it. With a debit card, the money is removed from your account at the time of the purchase. A thief can wipe out your checking or savings account before you ever realize the theft has taken place. Guard your PIN number at the ATM. If you choose to pay with cash, yet do not want to carry large amounts of money on your person, it is likely that you'll be making frequent trips to the ATM. Be aware of anyone lurking around the machine, and if someone is standing too close to you, simply ask them to step back. However, people aren't your only concern at the ATM. Thieves can install devices that read your information without you knowing it. If you notice anything unusual about the ATM, use a different one, and report what you've seen to the bank. Don't let your credit card out of your sight. Always check to see youve been given back your card once youve paid for what you bought. Also, unscrupulous clerks or waiters can skim the information from your card into a second machine and later make a new credit card for themselves. Worse yet, they can sell your information to an organized crime ring. Lighten your wallet. Remove anything from your wallet that you don't absolutely need to have with you. That way, if someone is successful in stealing it, they won't get as much. Never carry your Social Security card with you, but check other cards that might use your SS# as an identifier. If you're not going to be using your checkbook, leave it in a safe place at home. Make copies of your credit cards. Keep a master list of all

cards so if your wallet is stolen, they can be reported

promptly to the appropriate banking facility. Copy both sides of all your cards. If you lose
your wallet, you'll have easy access to all of your account numbers and Customer Service phone numbers, allowing you to alert the issuer immediately. Keep up with all receipts. Not only will you need them to make returns easily, but crooks are very interested in stealing the information they contain. Never stuff the receipts into your car visor or leave them exposed in any way. Thieves would much rather have your receipts than any gifts you've purchased.

Watch your credit card slip being filled out - and make sure it's not passed through the machine more than once. Ask for your carbons. Destroy the carbons, but keep your credit card receipts and check them against monthly bills.
Open your credit card statements as soon as they arrive. Check the bill for any unauthorized purchases. Even better, keep a watchful eye on your accounts by going online and reviewing your accounts each week. If you notice anything out of the ordinary, report it immediately to your bank. Doing so will likely remove any payment responsibility you might have for fraudulent purchases. Secure all personal information even while at home. Unfortunately, many times an identity thief is someone we know. During the holidays, you may have guests in your home. Remove temptation by putting personal information out of sight. Consider signing up for a credit monitoring service. Such services alert you via email anytime there is an inquiry or other activity to your credit report. In other words, if someone tries to open an account in your name, you'll know about it. Such services are offered by all of the major credit reporting bureaus, and could be money well-spent. Order your credit report. Consumers are allowed one free credit report every 12 months from each of the three bureaus. Order a report now from one bureau, and order another one in January from a different bureau. This will give you a good snapshot of activity and will alert you to anything unusual. Only make online purchases from trusted, secure websites. Look for https in the web address to verify security. Dont respond to Phishing attempts or SPAM emails. DELETE!

Incident Reporting
If you need to contact the police either as a victim of a crime or in behalf of a victim of a crime, the more information you can provide the better. Below is a list of key information to try to have available when communicating suspect information to the police.
1. DATE 2. TIME 3. LOCATION: 4. VICTIM/WITNESS INFORMATION 4a. Name 4b. Address 4c. Phone Number(s) 5. SUSPECT DESCRIPTION 5a. Number of Suspects 5b. Approximate Age 5c. Race 5d. Sex 5e. Complexion 5f. Height 5g. Weight 5h. Color Hair 5i. Color Eyes 5j. Facial Hair 5k. Accent 5l. Scars, Marks, Tattoos 6. DISGUISE WORN 6a. Hat 6b. Mask 6c. Shirt 6d. Glasses 7. CLOTHING 7a. Pants 7b. Jacket 7c. Shoes 7d. Jewelry 8. WEAPON 8a. Gun 8a1.Type 8a2. Color 8a3. Barrel Length 8b. Knife 8b1. Type 8b2. Blade Length 9. VEHICLE 9a. Type 9b. Color 9c. License Plate 9d. No. of Occupants

Crime Prevention Training

If you are interested in some Crime Prevention training, you can find dates and times for upcoming Crime Prevention training events on the CSPD Crime Prevention Calendar at: http://www.springsgov.com/Calendar.aspx?SectionID=67. Classes are open to the public with No RSVP required and are free of charge. Training will be held in the Community Room of the respective CSPD Division.

Important Phone Numbers Emergency:

For life threatening emergencies, please dial 911. Colorado Springs Non-Emergency: To report a non-life threatening crime or suspicious activity in Colorado Springs, please dial (719) 444-7000 Other Non-Emergency: El Paso County Sheriff, (719) 390-5555; CO State Patrol, (719) 635-0385 On the Road, *CSP CSPD Patrol Divisions: Falcon, (719) 444-7240; Gold Hill, (719) 385-2100; Sand Creek, (719) 444-7270; Stetson Hills, (719) 444-3140 CSPD Crime Prevention Offices: Falcon, (719) 444-7246; Gold Hill, (719) 385-2117; Sand Creek, (719) 444-7276; Stetson Hills, (719) 444-3168 Police Operations Center: 705 S Nevada Avenue Colorado Springs, CO 80903 (719) 444-7595 Crime Stoppers, (719) 634-STOP (7867) Drug Hotline (Narcotics Tips), (719) 444-3111; Impound Lot, (719) 667-2777