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Keep your Cyber Monday purchases out of the hands of ‘porch pirates’

Posted at 9:33 PM, Nov 28, 2016
and last updated 2016-11-29 09:53:08-05

SALT LAKE CITY — Just one click and you can score some of the best deals of the season, but beware.

Lt. Brian Lohrke with the Unified Police Department says every year, they hear about more porch predators.

"We're anticipating more than usual because people are more apt to shop online," said Lohrke.

If you or a loved one can't be home to receive your package, don't let those porch pirates make you walk the plank. Police recommend getting your package delivered to your work or a secure location like a FedEx or UPS store. Another option is to keep your neighbors in the loop.

"Also have their neighbors aware. Talk to your neighbors and let them know you have a lot of packages being delivered can you keep an eye on my house," said Lohrke.

Another idea is to leave a note for the delivery driver telling them to drop it off at the back door or next to the garage.

It's also a good time of year to take advantage of the deals on home security systems. With the latest technology, the quality and clarity of the video is better than ever and can really help law enforcement track down the suspect and recover your packages.

"Not only recover the packages but make some good arrests because if you make one arrest on these package thefts, you're solving a lot of cases," said Lohrke.

The key is to not let your gifts become an easy target. The same goes for your car while shopping. Make sure to keep your gifts in the trunk and out of view.

"Thieves won’t discriminate. Cars versus porches, they’ll try to steal whatever they can get," said Lohrke.

Another tip from a delivery driver is to keep a lock box or even a recycling bin on your front porch with a note for the driver to place your package inside.