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[–] Morbo 0 points 15 points (+15|-0) ago 

Home alarms, at least in the US, are often monitored by alarm service companies. If you set the alarm and leave the house and a break-in occurs, the alarm service will call you. You must provide your access keyword and either acknowledge a false alarm or allow them to dispatch a call to the police. If no one answers the call then they will simply dispatch the police. In areas I have lived it was a requirement to have an alarm service if you use your home alarm. It was also necessary in those same areas to register your home alarm with the local police station and receive an alarm certificate. If the police are dispatched to a residence that does not have a registered and valid alarm certificate, the police will fine the homeowner for every call they respond to from that alarm. I found out about the requirement from a false alarm that resulted in a police dispatch so I had to get my certificate or face hundreds of dollars in fines. It sounded like a racket to me.

Some people choose to use their alarms when they are home as well. I believe it is a pretty common practice actually. Activating your alarm at night while people are sleeping can give you advance warning of a break-in and possibly scare off the would-be thief. The alarm will be set to only respond to door and window sensors since motion detectors would be a bad idea to use when someone is home due to false alarms. It's just an added measure of safety assurance for some people so there's nothing wrong in activating an alarm when you are home. It's almost like having the advance warning a dog can give you just with more ears covering more rooms.