Would Amazon Key Help Stop Porch Thefts in the Treasure Valley?

With the holidays quickly approaching, the number of "porch pirates" in the Treasure Valley has risen drastically.

According to KTVB, Meridian's seen a steady rise of thefts in the last 30 days, including 18 residential burglaries.  Just last week, a burglar walked up to a family's home at 3:30 a.m. and stole a package off the doorstep.  They saw it all in the footage captured by their doorbell security camera.  Luckily, the contents of the package wasn't pricey.  They were party favors for the family's young daughter, but with the holidays approaching more of those boxes left on stoops will be more expensive items like game systems, tablets and drones.

This is the first holiday season I'll have an Amazon Prime membership and was really looking forward to doing the bulk of my shopping online, but stories like this make me second guess that decision. If you're like my fiance and I, it's almost impossible for us to arrange one of us to be home when our packages arrive.  I do keep a close eye on my shipping notifications to see when something's been delivered, but often I can't get out of the office until a few hours after it has arrived.

That's where Amazon's new "Amazon Key" service comes in! For $249.99, Amazon users can buy a smart lock and cloud-enabled camera that will allow Amazon delivery drivers to enter your home and leave your packages inside the door.  If no one answers the door when the driver knocks, they'll use the "key" system to unlock your door.  When that happens, you'll get a notification allowing you to watch the delivery live thanks to the camera.  A second notification is sent once your door has been locked again. Sounds pretty slick and convenient!

Unfortunately, when the service was announced on Wednesday, the Treasure Valley wasn't anywhere on the list of 37 cities chosen for the launch.  If Amazon customers really love the service and it's successful through the holiday season, the internet shopping giant will consider adding more cities to the list. Hopefully, the Treasure Valley will get it's shot at making the "Amazon Key" list in the next couple of months. I mean after all...we are the state capital!