Blog

By Kevin Holloway

When community members think of emergencies, they typically picture a natural disaster, inclement weather, or a structural failure. Yet, in today’s digital world, there’s another growing threat that often goes unnoticed: cybercrime. While this threat is much quieter than the physical disasters we may encounter, this emergency is just as dangerous and growing fast!

Throughout the years, cybercrime has often been considered a problem for big businesses, but the reality is that more and more community associations are finding themselves facing this crisis. Why? Homeowners’ associations manage highly sensitive resident information, vendor accounts, and large reserve funds. That’s exactly the kind of data cybercriminals are after! And, the repercussions of a successful attack can be catastrophic! It can lead to an erosion of trust from residents, legal ramifications, operational disruptions, and significant financial losses.

Knowing how and why these attacks happen is t...

By Kristin Amarillas, CMCA, AMS, PCAM 

CRIME IS ON the rise throughout California. This is not a general statement; it is a fact that has been shared with community managers throughout the state by local law enforcement. And it is not the first time we have heard this; in fact, we hear it every year. Since crime is regularly on the rise, we need to take steps to assist us in living with it in a way that will best prepare the community from being a target.

With so many options to address crime prevention, it can be difficult to decide how to proceed, especially when some are costly or require a good deal of labor and follow-up to be impactful. The truth is, the best crime prevention programs will always require a great deal of labor. If the efforts implemented are put in place and then left to be autonomous, they will become ineffective or disarmed quickly.

Gates, cameras, security (courtesy patrol, stationary, or armed guards), lighting, and a neighborhood watch program are the most...