Total incidents of reported crimes in the U.S. have fallen 9 percent in the past five years, a period when spending for security increased.

• Revenues for the security industry have risen 46 percent over the past five years -- to an estimated $57 billion.

• Spending for police protection rose by 113 percent from 1983 to 1993, the most recent figures available.

• The average home security system now costs roughly $1,400 to install and $20 per month to monitor.

Security industry professionals say television crime reports -- particularly those on local news shows -- are a boon to their sales efforts. While statistics on local crime reporting are difficult to come by, the networks' coverage of murders rose 336 percent from 1990 to 1995 -- excluding the widely-covered O. J. Simpson case.