With reading an article about last minute shoppers for the holiday seasons, I had to ask myself - "Does Holiday Sales create procrastinators?". Before continuing with us, make sure you are caught up with this discussion by reading the consumer article first.
Now, I know that people procrastinate shopping for the holidays before there were any really nice holiday sales to begin with. But, these days - holidays like Christmas are very commercialized. It's all about the lights, the decorations, the gifts. For one reason or another, people are shopping for gifts at the last moment! This has definitely not gone unnoticed by businesses hungry for more profits. So now we have businesses running campaigns targeted at these procrastinating shoppers and this simple fact has me wondering.
These sales that are targeting the last minute shoppers, is it an added cause for people to continuously procrastinate on buying their holiday gifts? Well, everyone loves saving money - so I think that people are actually waiting for these sales to occur before they start their shopping. Do you agree?
I believe that among all the buying and all the concern with saving money - younger generations are losing the real meaning of the holidays. We can buy each other gifts any day of the year, we can celebrate our family and togetherness anytime of the year - but how often does the majority of the nation celebrate on the same holiday? Families across the states are together - smiling, laughing, crying, fighting, taking pictures and just really spending time together. There is just something about it that makes it more special than if just each family picks some random day out of the year to celebrate (for whatever reason).
Holidays to me are about being around loved ones and just taking time out of our busy, chaotic lives and forgetting about it all - giving our loved ones all of our presence and appreciating that they are with us. So why pick a national holiday to do this? Well, what other day of the year do schools and employers recognized the time to let their employees and students go home to enjoy this wonderful day?
So for all families out there, we hope that you enjoy the December Holidays even if you don't celebrate it on the same day as us - just remember that there is a deeper meaning to the holiday other than gifts! 
And please do, offer any opinions with us. We still want to connect with you!
Happy Holidays & stay safe!
Feds Raid Dependable Locksmith Headquarters
Scamming locksmiths have been a huge headache across the nation. With the locksmith industry unregulated in 36 states, companies like Dependable have taken complete advantage of people in desperation and even threatening them into complying with their pricing. Since people feeling scammed is only considered to be allegations and requires much investigations - it's hard to bring down companies and takes a lot of work. Well, Dependable has made it much more easier for the government to bring them down. Because of other fraudulent behavior from Dependable, the feds seized their computers and documents. Below I have pulled the article from The Jacksonville Observer.
CLEARWATER, Fla. – Federal agents stormed the headquarters of Dependable Locks, a national locksmith chain based in Tampa Bay, Fla., on Wednesday, seizing computers and documents, and arresting one of its owners for alleged money laundering.
The raid came days after a WTSP-TV investigation into deceptive sales practices by the locksmith chain.
“This reaches throughout the United States,” said Doug Smith with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the agency to raid the office. “Clearwater… is where a lot of the employees were working, basically in a call center-type scenario.”
Despite hundreds of complaints to dozens of different state agencies, it took a collective effort from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Missouri Attorney General Office, and Clearwater police to bring the company down because locksmiths are unregulated in 36 states, including Florida.
Investigators arrested one of the owners of Dependable Locks, Moshe Aharoni, charging him with federal mail fraud. An affidavit accuses Aharoni, 28, and fellow owner David Peer, 31, of laundering money through Postal Service money orders. A federal warrant is out for Peer’s arrest.
The affidavit also accuses the owners of instructing their more than 100 employees – many of whom were Israeli nationals in the U.S. without work visas – how to overcharge and deceive customers. The Better Business Bureau gave the company an “F” rating because of hundreds of complaints received over the past two years.
The bust was months in the making, and more arrests are expected. A St. Louis man – Eliyahu Barhanun, 29 – was arrested in a simultaneous sting in Missouri.
“More complaints will come in,” Smith said, “and you’ve got to remember, these are allegations, so there’s more investigating to do.”
U.S. Postal Inspectors have established a hotline for those believing they are victims of locksmiths’ deceptive sales practices. The phone will not be manned, but callers are encouraged to leave their contact information at 1-877-876-2455.
How to Chisel Out the Strike Hole for a Deadbolt Lock
This is very simple, but it's good to know important small details to do correctly to prevent possible damage to your door.
Good luck!
Did this video help? Please let us know!
How to Rekey a Lock By Hand
Beating Home & Office Break-Ins
Throughout the decades, we have come up with hardware that could add more security to our doors. Criminals have always found ways around it. Criminals are up for the challenges we put there for them. So while you are looking for solutions to increase your safety at home or at work, know that we're on your side.
The Facts
There is a method to easily unlock 90%-99% of the nation's locks. It's been around for the long time, but the method has been leaked to the public and now anyone can learn how to do it. It requires a special key, anyone can learn how to make one but they don't need to know how - they can obtain one easily through the internet. This method is called bumping or lock bumping. This method has been publicized by individual people on Youtube to teach other people how to do it. So instead of trying to ignore the facts, it is time to put your security in your own hands. What can you do to increase the security of your home or office?
Upgrade Your Locks
Most people will tell you to upgrade your locks to high security locks. High security locks do use added locking mechanisms, but aren't totally crook proof. Criminals tend to be very smart and have proven themselves to be. They have found many ways around all of our past locking hardware, what is to stop them now?
So it's time for victims of these crimes to become smarter, stronger, and more cautious about their security. You have every right to protect what is yours and it is time for you to learn how. What are any other options that we have?
Installing Newly Invented Locking Hardware
Keeping up with the new inventions - big or small, has always been a great way to stay in tuned. With security, it has allowed people to feel a sense of security even if it's just temporary. You just cannot put a price on safety and security. There is a new locking hardware that you can buy right now. It's incredibly simple and it even allows you to keep your current deadbolt lock. It's called The Lock Jaw. It's affordable and you can easily install it yourself.
Stay Ahead of The Game
We can't repeat this enough, criminals are always trying to find ways to break through the challenge of the locks we put on our doors. So even if something seems pretty crook proof for now, doesn't mean that it will stay that way. Your job is to stay ahead of the game. It takes little effort and its worth it.
Phoenix Local Bloggers / Locksmiths
Hey Blog readers of America! We've started this blog to keep a close connection with our clients and to provide a more interactive resource for those in the Phoenix metro area who have questions about various locks, keys and security issues. Take advantage of this modern forum and learn more than you ever dreamed of knowing about the epic world of Phoenix Local Locksmiths!