After reporting this person on my porch I am told it is either:
1.) a shady alarm system salesman who will de-install your older alarm and put in a cheap-o new one, after which you will have two bills, one for the (removed legitimate) original alarm and one even higher bill for the new panel and computer box he puts in, that really didn't need to be put in. Yes all he does is replace the brain and panel with something slick. Needlessly. And signs you up with a cellphone-like contract and autopay.
2.) a criminal person trying to get inside to see what they can see. Or worse.
In this case it was the alarm scammer.
A knock at the door, and it is the typical young-ish clean cut person with the employee badge and clip board, excuse me. Tablet.. Claims to be from ADT or TYCO or other national service. Claims that he's been sent to upgrade your system under warranty.
(logo looked like this attachment. Anyone recognize it? shamefully I didn't recall its name)
He claims there is no cost to you.
He expounds upon the features like wireless (cellular) communication, wireless this and that.. touch screen with speaker/mike for the alarm co. to communicate with you.
Then he proceeds to tell you all about your own system, and gets every bit of it wrong from the manufacturer to the model and equipment locations. Shows you pictures of existing alarm panels. None matched mine. The information is all one way, from him.. It's not a real conversation but he just won't take 'no' and move along.
If he were sent by the alarm company, to definitely replace something required at their expense, surely this would have been preceded by a call or e-mail from the alarm company to discuss giving you all this free stuff for free.
--00--
I had stepped out on the porch and closed the door behind me. This person was extremely pushy and just as polite. My porch isn't very big. I had to repeat several times that he was not coming inside the house. He kept asking if he should take off his shoes before entering. He wasn't taking 'no' for an answer.
I finally just had to tell him, state it, that I don't want a new system or a touch screen or a speaker built in, my existing system is satisfactory, the cell modem I installed myself works perfectly, and I have no concern about it being old because over the years I've added to it, even replaced capacitors on the main board, installed a better regulator and bigger heat sink, and change the backup battery when needed, and have reprogrammed it using the technical manual each time changes were made. I really take care of it.
I also told him I will call the alarm company and discuss it with them. He said "No one calls the alarm company. They call you when the alarm goes off". I said I do call them, when I upgrade the system and to do tests, so they know what the codes mean. He looked bereft.
Finally he says "you're some kind of engineer aren't you?". I just said "well, yes, an engineer you might say, that's part of it.. but it's not always so nice a job", and added quietly, "I do a lot of bad things with technology. Very wrong.. Things. It's my job.
They make me do it." and I looked down at the ground, at which point he just stood there a moment without speaking, glanced around quickly, thanked me for my time, and hastily beat it. Not down the street to the next person with an alarm sign but into his car and off. Bet he won't be back either.
The moral, if there is one, is that these scammers, at best, could victimize nice trusting old people, or the ignorant young who live between the 'internet of things' and their smartphone screens.
