Everyone has seen them. The alarm sticker on a front window, the black dome camera that turns out to be plastic, the fake alarm box on the wall. They cost next to nothing. But do they actually work?
The short answer
A bit, but not as much as people hope. Opportunists might glance at a sticker and move on. Anyone with a bit of experience can spot a fake camera from ten feet away. So the deterrent effect drops fast the more organised the person is.
Why they are still worth having
Most break ins are opportunistic. The person walking down your street at midnight is not a professional. They are looking for the easiest house. A sticker, a real looking box, a doorbell camera, all of that adds up. It just should not be your only line of defence.
What actually works
Real, working locks. Motion sensor lights round the back. A doorbell camera that actually records. A neighbour who notices things. A visible patrol rolling past at random times. Layers. That is what security is.
The trap with fakes
If someone tests your fake camera by throwing a stone, or your dummy alarm box by tapping it, and nothing happens, you have just told them your house is easier than the sticker suggested. Fakes can backfire.
Our take
Keep the sticker if you like it. Add a real doorbell camera. Then add a properly visible deterrent that thinks and moves, an actual patrol. That combination is what makes an opportunist walk to the next road instead.
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