Posing as customers is an old trick but criminals are always ramping up their efforts to gain from every opportunity they can find.

Small businesses are especially vulnerable because even if they do have a security door and buzzer, for example, when a “customer” arrives you have to open for them.

Charnel Hattingh, Group Head of Marketing and Communications at Fidelity ADT, adds that in the suburbs, residents are contending with imposters too.

“This is also not a new trend; criminals just find more innovative guises to successfully gain access to a property,” she says. “They very often pose as council workers coming to check a meter box or with a form you have to sign for whatever reason.”

She warns that criminals watch homes to study routines and know when domestic staff are alone on the property. This is an opportunity then for them to pose as a delivery service or maintenance workers to con the domestic worker to open the gate.

“We have reiterated the danger of opening the gate to strangers on many occasions. Your perimeter protection is your first line of defence and if this is breached by someone opening the gate, things can go wrong very quickly,” Hattingh says.

“Along with other important security issues, employers must fully enforce a rule with anyone at home not to open the gate to strangers – no matter who they say they are!

“Ideally, homes should have an intercom system from which you can clearly see who is at the gate and clearly communicate with them about what they want without having to go outside.”

Hattingh says these are the 5 golden rules when a stranger is at the gate:

1. Ask who they are and what they want.
2. If you were not expecting them, don’t let them in – no matter what their story is.
3. If they say the employer ordered them to come fix something, the domestic worker needs to phone their employer immediately. It is not likely that the employer left home without mentioning a service provider is coming and for what reason. So, if they didn’t tell you, treat this person at the gate as highly suspicious.
4. If you don’t have an intercom system, talk to them through a window from the safety of a locked up house.
5. Keep a remote panic with you at all times and do not hesitate to press it to alert your security service provider if you see anything or anyone suspicious. This is especially important for domestic staff.

“In some areas, the council is busy switching homes to pre-paid electricity meters and it is usually well publicised that people should look out for these contractors in their neighbourhood,” she says.

“Residents are usually alerted to the identification these workers will carry, etc. and are fully within in their rights to ask for this. Just always be aware though that any work the council is busy with in your suburb opens the door for impersonators.”

Hattingh concludes that all strangers at your gate need to be treated as suspicious persons, and this includes people begging for food – even those with babies in prams.

“It is a sad reality that joblessness has forced many people into begging and into lying about who they are so that they can get onto properties and rob people – perhaps even harm them.

“Protect your loved ones and your possessions by sticking to strict security rules at home and ensuring you have the right security systems in place, and that they are working as they should.”

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COMPILED ON BEHALF OF FIDELITY ADT BY CATHY FINDLEY PR.FOR MEDIA QUERIES CONTACT JACQUI MOLOI ON 011 463 6372 OR This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.