Not long ago, surveillance equipment was only found in businesses, where a home video camera might be mounted over the store counter and an alarm at the door beeped whenever someone entered. Homeowners laid awake at night, listening for the sound of footsteps or breaking glass. But today, thanks to wireless technology, home security products have made surveillance equipment available to all who want it: business and home owners alike are using it to make their homes safer and more secure. Today's technology doesn't need to be hard wired: a supply of batteries and a calendar to remind you of replacement dates will keep your home running like a tight security center.

Electronic security systems have sometimes been nothing more than a fake video camera that will hopefully deter crooks, but systems have become more comprehensive as well as more economically manageable. You can still buy imitation surveillance equipment, but for similar amounts of money, you can honestly alarm your doors and windows, buy motion detectors for outside the home and put in lights that will deter criminal activity while adding to the value of your home.

What was once only available to James Bond and Maxwell Smart is now open to all: there are door locks that only open to certain fingerprints, pepper spray containers and stun guns that look like pens, and security equipment that automatically turns on sprinklers, sounds alarms, flashes bright lights and calls the police. Why worry endlessly about the security of your home? Do something about it—and get a good night's sleep!