Discover Germany | Special Theme | Safety & Security
More than an alarm system: New device helps scare off and track burglars During the holiday season, many people leave their homes unattended while going abroad – often with a very bad feeling. Burglaries are quite common during holidays, but German security expert AMG Sicherheitstechnik provides a new technical solution: Alarmtab. This is the first burglary reconnaissance system that not only sets off a burglary alarm, but tracks the culprits and collects evidence. TEXT: JESSICA HOLZHAUSEN I PHOTOS: AMG SICHERHEITSTECHNIK
Especially when there are no neighbours or family members looking after the house, many fear burglars might break in while they are away. “I would recommend everyone to install some kind of alarm system,” says Klaus Gehrmann, managing director at AMG Sicherheitstechnik.“It has been proven that breaking and entering happens more often in houses without alarm system, then in houses with one.” But even if someone has installed an alarm system, this does not mean the burglar will indeed be caught. Often enough the alarm goes off, but when the police arrive the burglars are already gone. Furthermore, 72 | Issue 42 | September 2016
identifying the person responsible is often impossible for the police. Alarmtab fills this gap. Looking like a tablet computer, one of the preferred products stolen during burglaries, it is placed somewhere in the house where it can easily be seen. If the owner leaves the house, they activate the alarm that also consists of sensors at windows and doors. If a burglar now enters the house, two things happen at once: a signal is sent to the owner’s phone pointing out someone has entered the house and Alarmtab starts playing a video to draw attention. “When developing the device, we approached
this psychologically, heightening the chances that the culprit indeed steals the device,” explains Klaus Gehrmann. The burglar grabs the Alarmtab, all the while it unnoticeably collects information and sends it to the owner such as pictures of the burglar and audio recordings. Alarmtab also activates a second system in the house, indicating for example that the owner has come back or someone is on the upper floor, to scare the burglar off before they can steal anything else. If they now leave the house, Alarmtab sends a tracking signal, allowing the police to hunt him down easily.“To heighten the chances of a burglar taking the Alarmtab, we will soon also deposit fake smartphones in the house, functioning the same way,” says Gehrmann. If the Alarmtab is stolen – as intended – the owner gets a new one for free. www.alarmtab.de www.amg-sicherheitstechnik.de