Crime Prevention Tips

The Milwaukie Police Department would like to pass along the below tips for doing your part in taking proactive actions to prevent crime. Preventing crime in your neighborhood and within the City of Milwaukie requires the partnership of its citizens, businesses, schools, neighborhood associations, various city departments, Milwaukie City Government, and Police services. Together, we can make a difference.

Identity Theft - Fraud

Identity theft is the general term for crimes involving the fraudulent use of your name, date of birth, social security number, or unlawful use of your credit cards, personal checks, or other securities.

Identity theft is a serious crime. Victims whose identities have been stolen can spend months or years – and their hard earned money – clearing their good names and credit histories. Due to theft of their identities, some victims have been refused loans for education, housing or cars; have lost job opportunities; or have even been arrested for crimes they didn’t commit.

Skilled thieves gain access to your personal information by:

• Stealing documents from mailboxes (bank and credit card statements, pre-approved credit card offers, new checks, or tax information.
   
• Breaking into parked vehicles to steal purses, wallets, backpacks, or briefcases unwittingly left inside. (It really doesn’t matter if the property is in plain view, or thought to be well hidden.)
   
• Gaining access to employment records where they work (taking files from their employers, hacking into business computers)
   
• Stealing credit and debit card numbers as you insert your card into bank money machines, using a special storage device secretly attached to the machine. This practice is known as ‘skimming.’
   
• Stealing personal information from your home.
   
• Gaining identity and banking numbers from you through Internet scams asking for your personal information.

How to Know If You Are a Victim of Identity Theft?

You can minimize your risk by cautiously managing your personal information.

Frequently monitor the balances of your financial accounts. Look for unexplained charges or withdrawals. Other indications of identity theft can be:

• Failing to receive bills or other mail. This might indicate someone is stealing mail for your mailbox. Or, this may be a signal an identity thief completed a ‘change of address form’ to divert your mail to another location
   
• Receiving credit cards for which you did not apply
   
• Denial of credit for no apparent reason
   
• Receiving calls from debt collectors or companies about merchandise or services you did not buy

If you discover you are a victim of identity theft, or your personal information has been lost or stolen, immediately report the incident to police. Notify the jurisdiction where the incident took place. The police will need the account numbers of the missing credit cards or check numbers.

The information will be documented in the report, and stolen items entered in a police database. Once police have documented your information, you will be issued a case number assigned for that report. Keep the case number. You may need it to validate your claims to creditors.

In addition, contact your banking institutions and credit card companies as soon as possible. These businesses will either close the account numbers in question, or place a Fraud Alert hold prohibiting use of those accounts. Inform them of the police agency taking the report, and provide them with the report case number.

If your banking institution does not already provide you with credit report information, you may order credit reports through any of three major credit bureaus:

Equifax – www.equifax.com
For credit report 1-800-685-1111
For FRAUD ALERT – 1-800-525-6285

Experian – www.experian.com
For credit report 1-888-397-3742
For FRAUD ALERT – 1-888-526-6285

TransUnion – www.transunion.com
For credit report 1-800-916-8800
For FRAUD ALERT – 1-800-680-7289

Manage Your Personal Information

A responsible consumer can minimize the risk of identity theft by exercising caution and prudence.

• Don't place passwords on your credit card, bank and phone accounts. Avoid using easily available information like your mother’s maiden name, your birth date, the last four digits of you SSN or your phone number.
   
• Instead, use a unique password that includes a series of upper and lower case letters, numbers, and symbols.
   
• Secure personal information in your home, especially if you have roommates, teenage children (teens have friends that visit), or employ outside help or service work done in your home.
   
• Don’t give out personal information on the phone, through the mail, or over the Internet unless you initiated the contact or you are sure the contact is legitimate.
   
• Identity thieves are skilled liars that often pose as a representative from a bank, Internet service provider (ISPs), or even government agencies to trick you into revealing identifying information.
   
• Double check that the contact is legitimate by calling customer service using the number on your account statement. Or, confirm the caller’s information and number in the telephone book.
   
• Guard your mail and trash from theft. Deposit outgoing mail in the post office collection boxes or at your local post office instead of an unsecured mailbox.
   
• Promptly remove mail from your personal mailbox. Don’t allow it to remain unattended while you are away at work, or shopping.

If you are planning to be away from home, call the U.S. Postal Service at 1-800-275-8777 (or your local Post Office phone number)
to ask for a vacation hold.

Shred charge receipts, copies of credit card applications, insurance forms, physicians statements, bank statements or anything else containing personal information before placing in the trash.

• Keep your Social Security Card in a secure place.
   
• Limit the number of credit cards and debit cards in your wallet or purse.
  Carry only those you will actually need for that particular day.
   
• Keep your wallet in a secured, locked place while at work. Thieves have been known to walk into businesses to quickly take purses hanging on chairs or hidden underneath desks. Wallets and purses have been stolen out of unlocked cabinets and file drawers.
   
• Safeguard your personal computer. Update your virus protection software regularly.
   
• Use a firewall, especially if you have a high-speed connection to the Internet. This limits uninvited access to your computer.
   
• DO NOT store financial information on your laptop or desktop computer unless absolutely necessary. If these items are stolen, the thief has access to everything on your computer’s hard drive.
   
• NEVER set your purse or wallet in a shopping cart. It takes mere seconds for a thief to steal these items as you briefly turn away to look at merchandise.

The information provided was acquired through the Bureau of Consumer Protection, United States Federal Trade Commission.

Prevent Theft and Damage to Your Vehicles

A significant number of police reports taken involve thefts from motor vehicles. Many of these thefts could have been prevented, by simply removing the valuables from the unattended automobiles.

Leaving backpacks, book bags, purses, or briefcases inside an unattended vehicle is an open invitation for thieves to steal your property. Excuses include, “I was only gone for a few minutes.” It takes mere seconds to smash a window to grab valuables inside.

Far too often citizens have arrived at a shopping mall where they immediately secured valuables by putting them in the trunk of their cars. Thieves know this, and are watching everything occurring in the parking lot. Once the vehicle is left unattended, it takes a screwdriver and very little time to punch the lock and gain access to the ‘supposed hidden’ property.

If you can’t take the valuables with you, but intend to secure them in the trunk of your vehicle, do this before arriving at your destination.

In our twenty-first century techno society, it is common to find people owning the latest and greatest electronic gadgets for use in their vehicles. Dashboard mounted GPS (global positioning satellite) navigation systems, radar detectors, cellular phone/IPODs, and other devices left in vehicles are open invitation for thieves to break into the vehicles.

Remove the theft incentive, and thieves are less likely to target your vehicle. Take these items with you when the vehicle is left unattended.

Do not rely solely on a security alarm to protect the contents of your vehicle. To break a window and grab valuables takes mere seconds.

Thieves won’t stick around long enough to get caught, and usually vanish long before someone investigates why the security alarm sounded.

“Stranger Danger,” Child Safety Information, and What Parents Need to Know About Preventing Child Sex Abuse

A parent’s worst nightmare is the fear someone could intentionally cause harm to his/her child. There are varieties of safety programs aimed at teaching children to recognize the dangers of interacting with strangers. Most of the training involves avoidance techniques, such as refusing to approach people inside vehicles, or running away when a stranger tries to talk to them.

There is certainly nothing wrong with this type of training, but studies have shown young children do not yet have the intellectual capacity to know what the word ‘stranger’ means, nor at what point a situation becomes dangerous.

As an example, local elementary schools asked a Milwaukie Police Officer to speak about ‘stranger danger’ to kindergarten, first and second grade students. Nearly all the children described a ‘stranger’ as a dirty, long-haired homeless person living under a bridge.

During the safety lesson, each learned that a stranger is anyone the child, or the child’s parents do not know very well.

The lesson included instructions on what the children should do if someone stopped in a car tried to talk to them while they walked to school. Each student eagerly recited the correct answer, “Stay away, run away, and tell a parent or a teacher!” The lesson included examples of how a stranger might try to trick them, such as offering candy, asking for directions, or begging for help to find a lost puppy.

Immediately after the lesson, the kids were sent outside for recess. As the teachers and the police officer watched, an unfamiliar car stopped near the playground. A man inside the car called to the children, asking who wanted some candy. Without the slightest hesitation, 85 percent of the children ran over to the man inside the car! The man in the car was part of a pre-arranged test to determine if the children had retained or even understood what had just been taught in class.

This experiment showed that although young children could repeat information learned, they did not yet have the capacity to comprehend how or when that information is useful.

The Oregon Chapter of The Red Cross suggests that a responsible 10-year-old has the decision making skills necessary to baby-sit. Oregon State Law specifies children less than 10 years of age cannot be left unsupervised.

Children rely on their parents or other adult guardians to keep them safe from harm. It is the parent or other adult guardians’ responsibility to ensure their children are properly supervised at all times.

Once the child has reached a maturity level allowing more freedom and less parental supervision, it is still the parents’ responsibility to know where and with whom their children interact.

Although unpopular with the teens and ‘tweens, to minimize risky behavior, parents should know the answers to these questions:

• With whom are you going?
• Where are you going?
• What is the age of your friend?
• Have I met the parents of your friend?
• Have I inspected the safety and cleanliness of the home where the child wants to visit?
• Do the parents of my child’s friends follow safety ground rules and social conduct similar to mine?
• Have I imposed a reasonable curfew that reduces the risk my child could get hurt?
• How great is the risk my child could be exposed to alcohol or other recreational drugs?
• Am I confident my child knows what to do if someone touches them in an inappropriate manner?
  • Does my child understand the difference between a good touch and a bad touch?
  • Does my child know its O.K. to tell me about it, and that I won’t be angry?

It is in our nature to fear and distrust strangers. Much of what our children learn about safety is related to stranger avoidance. Unfortunately, statistics prove children are physically and sexually assaulted or exploited more often by family members, relatives, and long-time friends.

The majority of criminal investigations related to child physical or sexual abuse involve adults known to the family, or relatives the child trusted. Although this is an uncomfortable topic to discuss with our children, it is imperative children receive the information and support necessary to minimize the risk of physical or sexual abuse.

If your child confides that he or she is a victim of sexual abuse, immediately contact the police. Most important is prompt medical evaluation to treat any physical injuries and reduce the risk of certain types of communicable diseases to which the child may have been exposed. Certain types of evidence dissipate over time. Details of the event are sometimes forgotten or tainted by outside influences unless promptly documented by a police or medical person qualified to perform the interview.

Counseling programs are available to support the victim of such trauma, and help the family cope with the potential ongoing consequences surrounding such an incident.

Residential Crime Prevention, Through Environmental Design and Neighbor Networking

Much has changed in the layout and structure of residential homes and yard space since the era of pre-1950s America. Suburban homes on residential streets were commonly built offering generous front porches where families congregated after returning home from school and work. The front porch invited social networking of neighbors. Children playing in the neighborhood could be casually monitored by adults on the porch.

Nostalgia aside, the design of the home, in combination with the culture of the times likely prevented much of the vandalism and crimes being experienced now, in the twenty-first century. Higher population density, busy lifestyles and chronic daily work stress has changed the focus on how we live and use our homes and property. After a stressful day, all a worker wants to do is go home and decompress. Many homes and yards are now designed to take advantage of personal privacy.

Often called ‘cocooning’ people prefer the seclusion of a fenced backyard, or close themselves off from the rest of the world in the privacy of the family room or basement inside the house. Blinds cover the windows. Fence walls, tall shrubs and hedges obscure the view of the front yard from the street. The need for privacy often outweighs the potential risk of becoming a crime victim.

There are simple and inexpensive ways of altering the appearance of the yard and home exterior that help to deter crime, while still maintaining a sense of privacy:

• Trim away the bottom branches and leaves on shrubs and hedges, leaving at least 12 inches of clear space between the ground and the lowest branches. A trespasser’s feet and legs can easily be seen if he attempts to hide behind foliage.
   
• Don’t allow shrubs and foliage to block the view of any basement or first floor windows or doors. Trim them to remain below the height of the windows. Thieves take advantage of concealed areas.
   
• Install night security lighting on the exterior of the home to turn on when motion is detected. (Make sure to position the sensor to activate only when someone has entered the property – sensing every movement on the sidewalk or the passing of vehicles in the street defeats the purpose of security lighting. Like the fable, The Boy That Cried Wolf, residents and neighbors alike will start ignoring constant, misused activations.)
   
• Consider installing a ‘see-through’ type fencing material for at least the front yard. This allows passing police cars to more easily check for suspicious activity during neighborhood patrols.

Additional suggestions:

• Your home’s address numbers must be easily visible from the street! The address numbers should be eye-catching and posted in prominent locations. Emergency Services suggest posting the house numbers at the driveway entrance, and also clearly marking it on the house in a lighted area.

  To receive prompt emergency service, responders must be able to easily find the correct address. During a medical emergency, such as a heart-attack or breathing difficulties, a few seconds can mean the difference between life and death.
   

• Introduce yourself to neighbors. At the very least, trade names and contact telephone numbers. Burglars are most often caught because a neighbor recognized something suspicious and called 9-1-1.
   
• Door-to-door salespersons must acquire a business permit through the City of Milwaukie. If a solicitor at your door cannot show the proper city documentation, please notify the police via the non-emergency phone number 503-786-7500.

  With the exception of children selling Girl Scout cookies, or children promoting local school fundraisers, all other salespersons must present the proper permit. Possessing the required city permit confirms the validity of the business and minimizes the chance the person on your doorstep has criminal intent.
   

• Notify police about suspicious activities while they are still occurring. Problems as innocuous as teens violating curfew laws can sometimes quickly escalate to criminal behavior, or jeopardize their safety.

Preventing crime in your neighborhood and within the City of Milwaukie requires the partnership of its citizens, businesses, schools, neighborhood associations, various city departments, Milwaukie City Government, and Police services. Together, we can make a difference.