Personal Safety & Security
Personal Safety
- Do not walk alone. Walking with one other person reduces your chances of being assaulted by 70%.
- Avoid walking through dark streets or alleys. The shortest route is not always the safest route. Avoid short cuts.
- Pay attention to your surroundings. Do not walk while talking on the phone or with your headphones on. Listen and pay attention.
- Be aware of deserted laundry rooms, parking lots, etc., especially at night.
- Only walk or jog in well-lit, populated areas. Vary your route.
- Shred documents that have personal information on them.
- Report broken locks, burnt-out lights, overgrown shrubs, etc. to your landlord immediately and in writing.
- Walk in the middle of a sidewalk to avoid people hiding in parked cars, bushes, or cars pulling up and abducting you.
- Ignore strangers who call out to you.
- Be aware of your body language. Walk confidently and briskly.
- Never hitchhike.
- Do not traverse unfamiliar neighborhoods.
- If you are being followed on foot, do not be afraid to cross the street or change direction. Enter a well-lit store or knock on a door and call the police. Join a group of people. Do not go home.
- If you are being followed in a car, turn around and walk the other way. Go down a one way street. Get the license plate number and call the police.
- Always let a friend know where you are going and when you expect to return.
- Let people know when you arrive where you were headed.
- Have your keys out before you get to the door.
- Stay sober and coherent. People under the influence of a substance are much more likely to be the victim of a serious crime or to victimize others.
Security
- Check the door locks to make sure they are functioning properly.
- Make sure your door has a deadbolt lock and a peephole.
- Become familiar with how your door locks operate, and remember to keep your door locked at all times.
- Whenever you leave your apartment, lock your door and take your keys.
- Check to make sure that all windows in your apartment are equipped with properly functioning locks and consider using riser restrictors for added security.
- If you have a sliding glass door, place a wooden rod in the door so it can’t be opened from the outside.
- Never "buzz in" someone you don’t know, and don’t allow strangers to follow you into the main entrance or to enter as you are leaving the building.
- Immediately report all suspicious activity, strangers loitering in or near the building or behavior by other residents or tenants that you feel presents a safety or security risk.
- To limit access to the building, do not prop open the front door.
- If the front door lock is not working, call the building owner or maintenance person to get it fixed.
- Do not allow anyone who is loitering or hanging out in front of the building to gain access.
- Always check to see who is at the door before opening it.
- Make sure all public areas of your building and walkways are well lighted.
For additional questions or concerns, please click here visit the UMass Boston Department of Public Safety webpage.
