How do Duress Alarms Work?

SimpliSafe® Security Systems are equipped to set up a Duress PIN that you can enter if you are being forced to put in your system information. This PIN type is for emergencies. If you are subscribed to a monitoring plan that includes 24/7 emergency dispatch and enter the Duress PIN into your Smart Lock’s PIN Pad or Keypad, our monitoring team will request dispatch of emergency services immediately. You will not hear an alarm siren or get a phone call for your safety. We hope you never have to use this feature, but it’s important to set it up and learn more about it to arm yourself with the knowledge to protect yourself.

Entering the Duress PIN into your Smart Lock’s PIN Pad or Keypad will unlock your door and/or disarm your system, all while alerting the monitoring center that you are under duress. Pressing the Panic Button for 2 seconds can also trigger a duress alarm if you have configured it to respond as a Silent Alarm.

Engaging the Duress PIN or pressing a Panic Button configured to Silent Alarm will not result in an audible alarm from your system. Primary Contacts are not notified of duress alarms when they occur in any capacity. This means you will not receive an Alarm Text, phone call, or a push notification alerting you to the duress alarm occurring. This ensures your safety by not potentially alerting the intruder that emergency services have been requested. 

The Duress PIN and Silent Alarms are intended to be used in situations where setting off the system alarm may not be ideal. For example, if someone is threatening you or forcing you to enter your PIN to gain access to your home or business. Using the Duress PIN would allow you to safely gain access to the property by unlocking your Smart Lock and/or disarming your system, but would send a signal to the monitoring center that you require immediate assistance. 

Once the monitoring center has received your duress alert, they’ll request dispatch of emergency services to the location of your system. After the request for dispatch has been made, the monitoring center will attempt to contact your Secondary Contact(s) to advise them of the alarm event at your location. Secondary Contacts will not have the ability to cancel the alarm.