There are a range of services available to assist you to keep you safe in your own home, reduce the risk of having an accident and assist you in making your home a safer place to live.
Everyone is vulnerable to ‘cold callers’. This might be especially applicable if you are lonely, isolated or vulnerable, with not much contact from family, friends or neighbours. Be mindful of answering the door if you are not expecting anyone to visit you at that time.
- Don't let people that you do not know enter your house
- Always check for identification
- Keep external doors locked, even when you’re at home.
- You can always politely tell doorstep 'cold callers' that you are not interested and ask them to leave.
- Video doorbells offer the ability to check who is at your door before answering it - giving you that extra peace of mind.
We will all at some point in our lives receive nuisance and marketing calls or junk mail. They can appear genuine, often posing as a provider or organisation you may have heard of or even use. There are steps you can take to remove your details to minimise the junk mail and nuisance calls received.
The Telephone Preference Service (TPS) is a free service where you can register to opt out of receiving unsolicited and unwanted sales and marketing telephone calls.
The Mailing Preference Service (MPS) is a free service where you can have your name and home address in the UK removed from lists used by the direct mail industry.
Tips and advice on keeping yourself safe: from pickpocketing and personal robbery to harassment and dealing with violent situations.
Personal safety: how to stay safe | Merseyside Police
Technology and the internet are part of our everyday lives and make a lot of things much easier. However, it’s important to keep in mind some general safety tips when you’re online to make sure you stay safe and avoid falling victim to cybercrime.
Here are some things you can do to stay safe online:
- Make sure your computer has at least a standard firewall and regularly updated antivirus protection. You can find more details on available via Google on firewall/antivirus protection.
- If you receive emails from a strange, unknown email address in your inbox, don’t open them — delete them straight away.
- Change your password regularly, have different passwords for each site you visit, and never give your password to anyone else.
- Make sure you use trusted providers when you shop online. For example, do your research if you’re booking a holiday over the internet to make sure the company is legitimate.
- Only ever use secure websites when you’re doing your online shopping or checking your bank account — look out for the padlock symbol in the search bar.
- You can contact your internet provider to request an adult block on your computer that blocks unsavoury or illegal websites that might host malware or spyware.
- Most internet providers give you the option to activate child safety features in your internet browser to help protect your children from unsafe websites.
- Keep an eye on who your children are talking to in chat rooms and online. Talk to your children about internet safety or get advice from their school, which may also be running cyber-safety classes.
- If you think you might be particularly vulnerable to fraud (for example, if you’ve been targeted by fraudsters before), you can apply to Cifas for protective registration, which puts in place another layer of security when you’re purchasing goods online or in store.
Sefton Council have developed a Damp, Mould and Condensation Guide following recent concerns in residential properties following the tragic death in Rochdale of Awaab Ishak.
You can view and download here.