What to do if Someone Breaks into Your House?

A home break-in is one of the most violating experiences a Melbourne household can face. Beyond the shock and the loss of physical belongings, modern burglars increasingly target laptops, tablets, smartphones, external hard drives — and the sensitive data that lives on them. Knowing exactly what to do, step by step, can protect both your family and your digital life in the hours that follow.

Ensure Everyone’s Safety First

Before anything else, your priority is the safety of every person in the home. If you arrive to find signs of a break-in — a broken window, a forced door, items scattered — do not go inside. An intruder may still be present. Move to a neighbour’s property or remain in your car and call Triple Zero (000).

If you are already inside and discover the break-in mid-progress, leave through the nearest exit without confronting anyone, then call 000. Your physical safety outweighs every other consideration.

Call the Police and File a Report

Once you are safe, contact Victoria Police by calling 000 for emergencies in progress, or 131 444 if the intruder has already left. Officers will attend to inspect the scene, take statements, and provide you with an Event Number — a critical reference you will need for your insurance claim and for any subsequent forensic or data recovery investigations.

Be as thorough as possible when describing what is missing. In Melbourne, residential burglaries have become increasingly tech-focused, with laptops, gaming equipment, and smartphones among the most commonly stolen items. Provide serial numbers if you have them — check your email for original purchase receipts if you did not record them separately.

Contact Your Home Insurance Provider

Call your home and contents insurer as soon as police have attended and you have your event number. Most Australian policies cover theft of personal electronics, though coverage limits for individual items vary. You will generally need:

• Your police event numberVictoria Police provides this when you report the incident — keep it secure.
• A list of stolen items with estimated valueInclude laptops, tablets, phones, cameras, gaming consoles, and external drives.
• Proof of ownership where possiblePurchase receipts, bank statements, or serial number records.
• An insurance report for damaged devicesIf devices were damaged rather than stolen, you may need a professional assessment. Computer Cures provides insurance reports for damaged computers and laptops across Melbourne.

Secure Your Digital Life Immediately

This is the step most Melbourne homeowners overlook in the chaos following a break-in — and it can cost far more than the hardware itself. If a thief has your laptop, phone, or tablet, they potentially have access to your email, online banking, cloud storage, and saved passwords.

Change Your Passwords Right Away

From a secure device (a family member’s phone or your work computer), immediately change the passwords to your most critical accounts: email, banking, PayPal, and any accounts linked to payment methods. If you use a password manager, revoke access from the stolen device. For help setting up a secure password manager going forward, our technicians can assist across Melbourne.

Enable Remote Wipe on Stolen Devices

If your stolen iPhone is signed into iCloud, log in to iCloud.com from another device and use “Find My” to place the device in Lost Mode and remotely erase it. For Android devices, visit android.com/find to lock or wipe the handset remotely. For Windows laptops with BitLocker enabled, your encrypted data is significantly harder to access without your credentials.

Alert Your Bank

If online banking apps were saved on a stolen device, call your bank’s fraud line immediately. Australian banks respond quickly to device theft notifications and can temporarily freeze cards and flag unusual activity.

Assess What Data You May Have Lost

Once the initial shock subsides, take stock of what data was stored on stolen devices. Were there irreplaceable family photos? Tax returns? A work project? Business documents? Many Melbourne residents store far more on their laptops and external drives than they realise.

If you had a cloud backup or Time Machine backup in place, most of this can be recovered. If not, it may be worth speaking with our data recovery specialists in Melbourne — in some cases, even devices that were returned damaged or partially wiped can have data retrieved from them.

This is also the moment to review your backup situation so it never happens again. Our guide on the difference between cloud backup and cloud file syncing is a good starting point, and we compare cloud backup versus external hard drives for Melbourne households to help you choose the right solution.

Watch Out for Identity Theft and Scams

A stolen device is a goldmine for identity theft. In the weeks following a break-in, be especially vigilant about:

• Phishing emailsCriminals may use information found on your device to craft convincing phishing emails that appear to come from your bank or a known contact.
• Phone scamsBe wary of unsolicited phone scams in the days after a burglary — thieves sometimes sell contact details alongside stolen hardware.
• Tech support scamsA common follow-up scam involves someone posing as a technician offering to help recover your device remotely. Learn to spot tech scams before engaging.
• Credit monitoringConsider placing a credit alert with Equifax or Illion in Australia to detect any attempts to open accounts using your identity.

Upgrade Your Physical and Digital Security

A break-in is, unfortunately, an opportunity to reassess your home’s vulnerabilities. Melbourne Police advise that properties with visible deterrents — security cameras, alarm systems, sensor lights — are significantly less likely to be targeted again.

Install a Security Camera System

A professionally installed CCTV system does two jobs: it deters future intrusions and provides footage that Victoria Police can use to identify perpetrators. Our team offers CCTV camera installation across Melbourne, including wired and wireless systems to suit every property type. For those researching options, we’ve compared the top wireless security camera systems available in Australia.

If you’re considering a DIY setup versus professional installation, our guide on DIY vs professional security camera installation walks through the trade-offs honestly. In most Melbourne homes, professional installation ensures cameras are positioned optimally and footage is stored securely — not on a device that could itself be stolen.

Secure Your Home Network

If your router or smart home hub was compromised or stolen, change your Wi-Fi password immediately and review connected devices. Our Wi-Fi setup and security tips cover the basics every Melbourne household should implement, including enabling WPA3 encryption and disabling remote management on routers.

A stolen smart speaker or home hub can sometimes expose your network credentials and routines. If you use a smart home setup, reset and re-pair all devices once you’ve secured your accounts. Our team can assist with protecting your smart home from hackers and reassessing your configuration.

Enable Multi-Factor Authentication Everywhere

Once you’ve replaced stolen devices, set up multi-factor authentication on every account that supports it — particularly email, banking, and your Apple or Google account. This single step makes it significantly harder for a thief with your password to access your accounts. For business owners, Office 365 multi-factor authentication should be your immediate priority if you use Microsoft 365 for work.

Replace and Restore Your Devices

Once insurance has been assessed, you’ll need to replace stolen hardware. Before purchasing, take a moment to understand what you actually need. Our guides on buying a laptop and whether you need a new computer can help Melbourne residents make informed decisions rather than rushed ones.

If you’re replacing a MacBook, our comparison of MacBook Air versus MacBook Pro is worth reading. For Windows users, our 9 things to know when buying a computer covers everything from RAM to storage types.

When your new device arrives, set it up properly from the start. Our technicians offer a full computer setup service across Melbourne, including data transfer from backups, software installation, and security configuration — so you don’t have to start from scratch alone.

Restore Your Data

If you had a cloud backup, restoring is relatively straightforward. If you had an external hard drive that was also stolen, or if you had no backup at all, speak with our data backup and recovery specialists. In some cases, data can be retrieved from insurance-returned damaged devices; we also handle emergency data recovery in Melbourne for urgent situations.

For Melbourne Business Owners

If the burgled property was a business premises, the stakes are higher. Stolen hardware may contain client data, financial records, or proprietary information — and you may have notification obligations under the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme administered by the OAIC.

Contact your IT support provider immediately. If you don’t have one, Computer Cures provides small business IT support across Melbourne, including emergency response for device theft incidents. Key steps for businesses include:

• Revoke access tokens and VPN credentialsAny employee device that is stolen should have its credentials immediately revoked from your systems.
• Assess your data breach obligationsIf customer or employee data was on stolen devices and those devices were not encrypted, you may need to notify affected individuals and the OAIC.
• Review your cybersecurity postureOur cybersecurity solutions for Melbourne businesses include a full security audit to identify weaknesses that burglars — physical and digital — might exploit.
• Implement a business continuity planA business continuity plan ensures that a single incident — theft, fire, or ransomware — doesn’t shut down your operations.

Prevent It From Happening Again

The best outcome of any break-in is a fundamentally more secure home and better-protected digital life. Some practical steps Melbourne households can implement right away:

A break-in is a deeply unsettling experience, but with the right steps, Melbourne households can recover quickly — and come out the other side better protected than before. If you need hands-on help with any aspect of the technology recovery process, the team at Computer Cures is here to assist.

From recovering lost data to setting up new devices securely, configuring security cameras, or helping a small business recover from a data breach — we’ve helped thousands of Melbourne residents and businesses get back on their feet after tech crises.

Disclaimer: This article provides general guidance for Melbourne residents following a home break-in. Always prioritise personal safety and contact Victoria Police (000) in an emergency. Insurance and legal obligations vary by policy and circumstance — consult your insurer and, if required, a legal professional.