Taser Makes New Gun to Prevent Crime

Police forces across the country are giving rave reviews of a new gun to prevent crime. The gun is an otherwise normal Taser, or stun gun, but it has special recording equipment in the handle.

The handles of these Taser guns have small video cameras built in. The handles can then record criminal incidents for review.

The camera-equipped Tasers cost about $1,500, which is paltry in comparison to the cameras that rest on most police car dashboards. Dashboard cameras cost about $5,000, so the Taser is actually cheaper.

Some police departments have already adopted the camera-equipped Tasers with positive results. The footage captured helps defend the police officer's actions and can be used in court against the defendant.

Higher Education Helps to Prevent Crimes, Study Shows

Studies have shown repeatedly that higher education helps to prevent crimes, from murder to theft. In fact, the Common Good Forecaster, a United Way project, indicates that even one more year of education can make a difference in crime levels.

For example, the Forecaster points out that if every adult in New Mexico were moved up one schooling level (e.g., high school drop-outs would become high school graduates), the murder rate would drop by over half.

Similarly, the incarceration rate would fall by more than 60 percent. The number of people who return to prison after a previous incarceration would also drop.

The Forecaster proves that education has a powerful and positive effect on crime prevention. Even small additional amounts of education have the ability to reduce the number of serious, violent crimes.

Tips on How to Stop Cyber Crimes

The information stored on your computer and all the data you send into cyberspace leaves a huge opportunity for identity thieves to hack into your personal information. For tips on how to stop cyber crimes, read on.

Potentially, if you use the Internet, everything you store on your computer's hard drive could fall prey to hackers. To prevent this from happening, avoid storing any revealing financial information on your computer.

For example, you don't want to store electronic copies of your income tax returns on your computer. Instead, put them in locked files or a safe.

Likewise, make sure you password protect all of your email accounts, bank accounts, and sensitive documents. Your passwords should be complex, with capital letters, numbers, etc. Avoid using common words or phrases and change all of your passwords often.

Do Cameras Prevent Crime Activity or Are They a Waste of Money?

Security cameras are ubiquitous these days, appearing in everything from department stores to video rental stores. But do cameras prevent crime substantially?

Although it is generally accepted that cameras are a deterrent to crime, more research exists on whether cameras reduce crime. The answer to that question, based on the results of surveillance systems in major cities, seems to be yes.

For example, when the Chicago Police Department (CPD) installed a Web-based surveillance program in February of 2006, the cameras helped police make 1,200 arrests in a year-and-a-half time period.

"Our preliminary research shows that they are effective, especially left in places for over 180 days," explained Jonathan Lewin, the commander of the CPD's information services. "Once it's in, it's hard to move because the community loves it. If they don't see the camera there one day, we get calls."