Late at night, when most people are sound asleep in their beds, there will be some out and about. Some are night workers or those craving a midnight snack. Others could be lost or in distress.
Others still could be taking advantage of the sleeping populace to commit crimes in the shadows. If you hear a knock on your door, it could be completely innocent or possibly a criminal trying to gain entry into your house.
How you react can make the difference between thwarting a crime, becoming tonight’s victim, or helping someone in genuine need. Here is what to do when someone knocks on your door late at night.
Prepare and Assess
You don’t want to be dealing with a late night situation with your pants off. Dress yourself in at least a shirt, pants, and shoes. Do this quickly and quietly without alerting them to your presence, and do not neglect to put on shoes in case you have to go outside or step on broken glass.
Criminals will often knock on doors to see if anyone is home so they can assess the risks of breaking in. They may also be hoping someone will answer by opening the door so they can gain entry without having to break anything. By remaining quiet, you retain the element of surprise.
Check your security camera if you have one to see if you recognize the person and to visually assess them. Without cameras, you will have to look through the peep hole or through a window. Do this without being noticed. Look at how they are dressed, if they keep looking back over their shoulder, their demeanor and condition, and try to see any vehicles they may have arrived in.
Related: How to Deal With Neighbors and Friends That Come Begging for Food at Your Door in a Crisis
When approaching the door, make sure you have some sort of defense for yourself, whether it be pepper spray, a hammer, a knife, a firearm, or anything else. The more lethal, the better, as you may not have more than a split second to react, and you do not want to bring a hammer to a gun fight.
That said, anything is better than nothing and not all situations will constitute the legal use of a firearm. Also bring your cell phone and a flashlight if possible.
If the person seems threatening, call the police immediately and remain indoors.
For those serious about fortifying their homes against unexpected intrusions or crises, the Special Forces Home Defense Academy offers tested strategies from one of the world’s toughest professions. Whether it’s setting up effective defenses or handling intruders, this guide provides a blueprint for staying secure indoors when the outside world turns unpredictable.
Make Contact
If you cannot determine the intent of the person through visual inspection, communicate with them through the door, or preferably through a Ring camera or similar device. Turn on the porch light and, in a confident and commanding voice, ask them who they are and what they want.
If you have family members in the house, especially teenagers, it is very possible it could be one of their common courtesy deficient friends or acquaintances. Verify with that family member before opening the door.
If the person says they are from a delivery company, utility service, law enforcement, or any other organization, ask their name and purpose.
Call the official number of the organization to verify the visit. If they give a non-emergency reason for knocking, tell them to come back tomorrow during the day.
Do not be duped by emergencies. Urgency can overwhelm one’s sense of caution and cause you to act hastily.
Deceptive excuses include medical emergencies, car troubles, utility problems, delivery mistakes, lost pets or children, help for a neighbor, law enforcement impersonation and many others.
Utility companies and first responders often do knock on doors late at night for real emergencies, and they also have emergency numbers to call. Do not hesitate to call 911 or other emergency numbers to verify their identity. Afterall, you do need to know immediately.
Keep the Door Closed Unless it Is Safe to Open
Unless you can absolutely verify the identity and purpose of the visitor and have determined they are safe enough, keep the door closed. It is the only physical barrier between you and them.
Once the door opens, even if it is on a chain, you may need to defend yourself physically. You may be able to close the door again if you feel the need, but once opened, you are likely to become more committed to the situation.
Listen to Your Instincts
Gut feelings are real and should be taken seriously. If you feel threatened at all or the situation seems fishy, keep the door closed and call the authorities. If the person does in fact have car troubles, a lost pet, or a missing child, they could benefit from law enforcement coming to help and they should not rely on strangers. Help them and yourself by calling the police.
Similarly, someone with visible wounds, hypothermia on a cold and rainy night, children, or others with visible distress may need immediate help. Not everyone is a criminal, and some people genuinely need help late at night, especially if you live in a rural area. Use your best judgment and do not be afraid to help someone in genuine need.
It is not always them who need help either. There could be a brush fire coming towards your house, a burst pipe gushing water, your dog got out, or something else you would want to react to. It is safer to maintain a security posture, but you may actually need to open the door to resolve the situation.
Until you have assessed the situation and the person, ensure you have security in mind by being dressed and having the necessary tools to deal with the person. Verify their story as much as possible without opening the door, and keep in mind that you can be the difference that prevents a small emergency from growing into a great one.
Late-night knocks can be unsettling, but preparation is your best defense. This guide helped me create a fortress-like home defense that can withstand crises of any magnitude. Unlike general advice, it brings you strategies designed to give you the upper hand during unexpected encounters.
From detailed layouts for securing entry points to psychological tactics that can deter intruders, this handbook equips you to stay calm, prepared, and protected in high-stakes scenarios. It’s not just about safety—it’s about maintaining control when every second counts.
Have you ever had someone knock on the door late at night? Let us know how you reacted and what happened!
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1st Turn on all the lites
Then you call out to God to protect you , give you wisdom , so as to make the right decisions
Then you wake up all neede help
Then you call out to who ever to identify themselves
Ask What are the here for , Why so late , and can come back in morning
ususally if the have wrong motives they will lie , and make up lies to get what they want
appeal to your senses of help and need and what ever kiniving things they can .
Lots of Lite s
Dogs
Last resort is weapons , guns , knives, shields and large blunt items
Remember Motive , why are they there
call out for them to stand back , away so you can properly assess the situation
Distance make s effective time for action
Make sure they dont Group up and have others in background or side areas of field of vision
Make sure your not alone to deal with this
Remember the heart is desparately wicked and with out God they will do anything in their power to get what they want .
caution , noise , loud scares away
Dont be the nice person is taken by evil intent
Your god doesn’t exist; therefore your imaginary friend will not protect you.
I’ve always found that those who say God doesn’t exist…are just trying to convince themselves.
YOUR God may not But my God Does exist for ever Why not try mine God and leave our muslumm god that does not exist
Why are you even here?
You appear to have nothing but I’ll intent for anyone you reply to.
Is your life so deficient in love and understanding that your only emotions are hatred and negativity?
Seek professional help for your general disdain for others and for your tds.
If there is no GOD, why is there a flash of light at conception. Why is there patterns in all life. How did life begin, the planets form and space to exist. What’s at the edge of space. Who created it all. Where did the ‘Big Bang come from. You might not believe…..now, wait until you’re older and begin to understand how little you know.
When faced with their own demise there are no atheists.
A real atheist would be out enjoying the pleasures that life has to offer, instead of making false claims in what can only be a pathetic effort to kill a nagging conscience.
So… yes, Lisa, the Bible is real. Heaven is real. Hell is real. The only way to Heaven = complete surrender to Jesus Christ = the Good News.
Please choose wisely.
i did have a late night knock one night. i answered the door with my 45acp behind my back. my door was solid so i couldn.t see who it was without opening the door. it was a policeofficer looking for a peeping tom in the trailer park i lived in. as soon as i saw who it was i informed them i was armed and would set my pistol on the table. the officer laughed and said he would have done the same thing. he actually had me help him look for the suspect after talking. i was a usaf security policeman. i knew most of the policeofficers but not this one. its always best to be prepared, you never know.
If someone says they need help, tell them to sit on the steps and you will call the police for them.
Personally, I DO NOT and don’t recommend turning on all the lights… except for the porch/outside lights… You remaining in the dark gives you a good advantage… Seek to have visible answers as to just who it is knocking on your door… you don’t recognize them, get 911 on the phone then… They will want to listen and possibly start a unit to your location while you attempt to identify the person… DO NOT open the door, in the mean time make sure you have checked your back door/back yard for movement… I trust no one… always keep the advantage no matter who or what it is…
If you can attempt to see who is out there without letting them know that anyone is even home or awake, it gives you extra time to get police rolling.
First things first. My 2 dogs (one a pitbull mix and the other a very large lab-hound) will make the appropriate greetings to unannounced visitors. These 2 dogs will send anyone back from the door. One time I opened the inside door to 2 men. When the 2 dogs came to the door and were barking at them, they jumped backwards off of my stoop and left.
Secondly, my shotgun (1st line of defense in close quarters) and other firearms, most that my wife knows how to use, are the next line of defense, which includes directing anyone breaking into the house into a line of fire (“tunnel of death”). Then there’s bear spray, wasp & hornet spray for the eyes (good up to 25 ft in a straight line of spray), baseball bats, spears, knives, etc.
We have a wooden inner door and a glass outer door which stays locked. Day or night I look out the window if somebody knocks. I’ll open the wooden door but, day or night, the other door only opens for friends. If I’m worried enough about whoever is at the door I go out the side door with Sig behind the back and surprise them and find out their business. Otherwise I tell them through the glass door to go away, and start keying 911 into my phone. Crazy how the majority of people want to argue when I tell them to GTFOMP. What don’t they get about Texas Castle Doctrine and No Retreat laws.
Kinda wondering why everybody stopped griping about Biden/Harris, old Joe is more of a threat the next two months than ever before.
I have a peep-hole and a hook with a jacket hanging on one side of it. Under the jacket is a 9mm pistol that is ready to go. Anytime I answer my door I have a hand on the pistol.
I also have motion detection for lights that come on at night.
It’s a shame, too. Growing up we could leave our front door unlocked.
The morality of our society has changed.
They’ve tried to remove God from school and our daily lives. People incorrectly think the idea of ‘separation of church and state’ means no religion or that the recognition of God in our schools is wrong. What ‘separation of church and state’ really means is that the ‘state’ cannot tell you what religion to follow. This is what they used to do in England and the rest of Europe. The King would tell you what the religion of the country would be. This is a reason for ‘freedom of religion’ in our country. Bibles aren’t allowed in schools anymore, but are encouraged in prison. Maybe, if kids were allowed to read the Bible in school…they wouldn’t end up in prison.
The idea of discipling children is discouraged. Kids no longer know the fear of hearing a leather belt being rapidly pulled through the belt loops on a pair of jeans. The idea of responsibility and accountability for one’s own actions is almost non-existent…blame the other person or blame society for the criminal’s behavior.
The idea of morality, right and wrong, starts in the home. When parents expect the schools to teach their kids right from wrong, parents have shirked their responsibility and it all goes sideways.
Now, considering the day…I wish everyone a very happy and safe Thanksgiving and later…a very joyful and Merry Christmas.
Growing up in the 50s and early 60s we had The Bible in public school. We learned the 10 Commandments, started every day saying the Lord’s Prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance and singing the Star Spangled Banner. Of course we all turned into a bunch of pot smoking anti-war hippies fighting the Sexual Revolution (what a battle that was! heehee). I have nothing against religion in the public schools but do get a big horse laugh every time somebody gets going on the good old days syndrome. Basically, religion is a simple minded approach to the complex lives we live. Still love me some Bible, though, especially the adventures of Saul and David. Honestly I have to admit if a child’s only book was The Bible and that child mastered the entire book, that child would be better educated than 98% of the world.
I have 2 yappers in the house. They bark if they hear a leaf blow. The cacophony will put your eardrums out! They don’t hang around. Lol
I think Lisa sold her soul……
Storing in thick glasses sulfuric acid near the entrance door; and spraying considerable amount of sulfuric acid on the head of the terrorist through the glass pipes while the door is locked.
Aaron Pattison wrote an excellent article. Hitting all the main points. He laid out the pros, cons, and consequences of our actions.
I live in a semi rural area with a very close knit group of neighbors that stay in touch. That said, anything can happen anywhere these days. I’m an avid gunner, so for me, it’s just a matter of having a loaded (familiarized) hand gun with me when I go to the door anytime after the sun sets, with a good dose of the common sense that Aaron has laid out.
Aaron Pattison wrote an excellent article indeed!
storing in thick glasses sulfuric acid is very dangerous Is.
If you have the awareness to ask God for guidance in a unknown situation… that is like a reset button for your emotions. Possibly giving you the advantage in a negative situation.I’m no preacher….just a sinner. And we are all at different levels of awareness.
My mom was the late night knocker. It was early on in the progression of Alzheimer’s. Thankfully we live in a rural area and the closest house were people we knew well and I lived minutes away.
The only time I remember a late night knock was when a family member forgot his key. He returned the favor when it was my turn to forget the key. LOL
There were a few other knocks against the door, and they were from animals wanting to come in.
Only once was it nefarious, and there was no knock. It was years ago when two guys tried to break in to my apartment. They were trying to pick the slider lock, and I heard them talking. They didn’t know I worked nights and had only just gotten into bed so was still awake.
I called 911, speaking as softly as I could. I stood with a butcher knife in hand on the other side of the slider. If they walked in, the first guy would walk right into the knife, and I’d use him as leverage and push him into the other guy.
They gave up trying to to pick the lock, and the cop arrived about five minutes later. The cop thought I was just running scared, but I knew what I heard. Next day saw their footprints on the fake grass on the deck.
Where I live now, neighbors watch out for each other. One guy is a bit of a gossip, but NOTHING escapes his watch. If he sees something, he reports it, and tells everyone.