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Could criminals be scoping your home online?

Google search your address and you may be surprised to find photos of your home online, even if you've been living there for years.

PHOENIX - One of the first things you do when selling your house is to go through each and every room and take pictures, hoping they’ll catch the eye of a potential buyer.

"The better the photos, the better the photographer, the better the listing, and better the chance of getting that home sold,” said realtor Jim Cavanaugh.

Websites like Zillow and realtor.com make it even easier for your photos to be seen.

But your beautiful pictures might also be catching the eye of a criminal.

"Burglars and thieves, they have time. They're very creative,” said David Kothie, a retired Phoenix police officer.

Burglars are searching through real estate websites, combing through homes for sale and using the photos to pick which ones to target.

"If somebody's looking to target the house, it just gives them basically an opportunity to go shopping,” Kothie said.

It also gives them a road map to your house, allowing them to plan their every move before ever seeing the property in person.

"It gives them an opportunity to basically case the house without even having to case the house,” Kothie said.

There are steps you can take to protect yourself and your home.

Realtors like Jim Cavanaugh always tell clients to hide their valuables so they don’t end up in the pictures.

"You kind of want to make the home less personal in that regard, from clutter to high-end jewelry,” Cavanaugh said.

And once your home does sell, be sure to directly message third-party websites to ask them to remove any photos you don’t want up on the internet.

"If you don't want it online, you've gotta take it off. Because it stays there forever."

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