Sound the alarm with SecureMe

You’re on a business trip in Paris. Suddenly your cellular phone receives a text message from Manila: "The alarm has been set off." It means that a break-in is currently occurring in your house.

But you don’t feel helpless and you go on with your business deals. Already aware of the situation, security forces in your subdivision are on their way to your house to find out what’s going on. They apprehend the blundering miscreant just as he is sneaking out of the house with the loot.

While the scenario may be hypothetical, the technology is very real.

In fact, the alarm system is already available in Metro Manila from FindMe Location-Based Services (LBS), a member of the Lopez group of companies. A typical dot-com operation housed in a small compound in Mandaluyong City – at N 14 degrees 24’ 47" and E 121 degrees 02’ 55" to be exact, for you Global Positioning System (GPS) lovers out there – FindMe LBS offers GPS tracking and map services, among others. FindMe was a competitor of the Lopez-owned geographic information system service provider BayanMAP Corp. until they formed an alliance last year.

After a recent successful test at its headquarters, a large well-known pawnshop company decided to pilot-test FindMe’s alarm system in two of its branches. A company official, who declined to be identified, estimates that the alarm system could potentially save the company up to 48 percent on security expenses, mainly spent on security personnel.

He declines to say how much the company spends on security, but definitely it’s a lot. "Because of the system, we’ll only need one security guard instead of two in our branches," he says.

While pawnshops, banks and commercial establishments are the most obvious clients to be targeted, FindMe is also eyeing ordinary homes. FindMe is in the midst of talks with an association of homeowners in a posh village south of Manila. How much it’s going to cost them is under wraps.

Wireless security

While the alarm system seems to be hi-tech a la Mission: Impossible, it is actually quite simple enough. "It’s a wireless security system which can be customized according to the customer’s requirements," says Francis Arnaldo, FindMe business development manager.

All you need are sensors that can detect either motion or heat. You can buy them off the shelf, some for as low as P1,500. Heat sensors can be used to protect vaults since thieves often use acetylene torches to break in.

These sensors are then connected to FindMe’s electronic security device called SecureMe – the "brain" of the alarm system – which is about the size of a pocketbook. The device is installed somewhere in the house where it cannot be easily found.

The sensors act as trip wires. If they are triggered, the SecureMe device will send a text message to your cellphone informing you that the alarm has been triggered. Or, the message will be sent to a base station, which may be located at the security headquarters of your subdivision. Authorities there can send a police patrol car or an ambulance after determining the type of emergency.

In case of power outages, the SecureMe system has a back-up battery. The only way you can disable the system is to destroy the cellular phone site – which, if you do, will certainly attract a lot more unwanted attention.

Installation cost

Arnaldo said the installation cost of a SecureMe system varies according to the number and type of sensors that the customer needs. "If there is already an existing alarm system, we can make use of that and the customer can save a lot on hardware cost," he explains. "You can use the system to secure only your bedroom by installing one sensor to guard the door, for example."

Market rates for security systems now average $800 per installation. But for SecureMe, there is no monthly service fee since the owner can easily operate the system by himself. The maintenance cost to the owner will be for text messages sent by the alarm. In this case, even prepaid mobile phone cards will suffice, and the system is compatible with any GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) network.

Arnaldo points out that SecureMe can enhance any security system. "There is no fool-proof alarm system," he says. What it is designed to do, Arnaldo says, is to alert you or the security force to break-ins without the intruder knowing it, thus, increasing the chances of catching the culprit.

For those out shopping for a security system, that should make FindMe’s SecureMe a good find.