Criminals are using Zillow to plan break-ins. Here's how to remove your home in 10 minutes.

About 30 seconds.

Here's the thing: I'm not some hacker. I used free websites anyone can access from their couch.

In Delray Beach, Florida, a retired couple had their sliding glass door shattered by thieves. The attackers had their home address from leaked personal data. That crew went on to hit victims in multiple states.

A former NYPD detective put it bluntly: today's burglars can case your home from their chair with a cup of coffee and get better intel than they ever could sitting outside with binoculars.

Zillow's database covers over 160 million homes. Listing photos often stay online long after a home is sold. That means photos of your home, taken when you listed it three, five, even 10 years ago, could still be sitting there right now showing every room, every door, every window and exactly where your security cameras are mounted.

Anyone can type your name into a free people search site and get your home address in seconds. Then they plug it into Zillow and see your floor plan, entry points, window types and where the security cameras sit.

Unless you're selling your home, take down your photos. Now.

These steps can look a little different depending on your device, app version or browser. If it's not exact, poke around. The option is there.

Redfin: Sign in at redfin.com. Go to Owner Dashboard. Select your home > Edit Photos > Hide listing photos > Save.

Realtor.com: Go to realtor.com/myhome. Claim your home, then select it under My Home > Remove Photos > Yes, Remove All Photos.

Pro tip: Ask your old listing agent to pull photos from the MLS. Once they're gone from MLS, the feeder sites eventually follow.

Also, while you're at it, search yourself on people search sites like Spokeo, WhitePages and BeenVerified. Most let you opt out. It takes some time per site, but it cuts off the first step criminals use to find you. Better bet is to sign up for Incogni, a sponsor of my national radio show and podcasts.

I guess you could say Zillow gives everyone an open house. Problem is, you never sent the invitations.

Know someone who bought a home in the last few years? Forward this. Their listing photos are probably still online and they have no idea. You can sign up for my 5-star rated newsletter at my website, Komando.com. 

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