Times have changed. Remember the good ole days when someone came to your door and explained, “Hi, I’m John Smith from Blah Blah High School and my football team is going to Miami for a tournament.” You get the idea. You would have no problem giving John a check and wishing him and his team luck and never thought twice about being scammed.

It’s a shame, but it’s not like that anymore. If you get that same line today, you need to think twice about giving this guy a check. You also need to think, “Should I even open the door?”

If you receive a knock on the door and an unfamiliar person is observed, you need to be very cautious about opening the door. I suggest, not to and if the person is asking for help, tell them you will call the Sandy Springs Police for them.

A very good tip is if you do receive a knock at the door; make sure you let whoever is on the other side know that someone is home. Criminals use this trick to see if anyone is there. If you don’t say anything, they will think the home is unoccupied and might try to break in.

All businesses in Sandy Springs must have a permit to operate; this includes door-to-door solicitors. It is not meant to regulate solicitation for charitable, political, or other nonprofit purposes provided that all sales proceeds are the property of and used by the nonprofit organization.

Officer Larry Jacobs is the Crime Prevention Officer for the Sandy Springs Police Department. He can be reached directly at ljacobs@sandyspringsga.gov.