A new high-tech doorbell aims to stop holiday package thieves in their tracks.

The Issaquah Police Department has partnered with Ring, a company that produces doorbells with a video that monitors doorsteps and alerts homeowners of suspicious activity.

Issaquah neighborhoods have been a target for thieves who steal packages off of doorsteps in recent months. According to the police department, during the month of December, when people receive packages from loved ones in the mail and await the delivery of gifts ordered online, incidents of postal theft are especially on the rise.

Issaquah Police Community Resource Officer Ryan Smith said that in today’s world, “more people shop online than in person,” meaning that all of those purchased gifts have to end up on homeowners’ doorsteps, where “criminals take advantage of that.”

To combat this, the police department has loaned out video doorbells to residents of areas that have been hot spots for thieves in the past, including Talus and the Highlands.

The video doorbell by Ring uses Wi-Fi to connect to a homeowner’s smartphone via an app. Smith explained that the doorbell has an infrared heat sensor that alerts a person over the app whenever anyone comes to the doorstep. This way, a homeowner can see a video of anyone who comes to the door, and can even talk to the person over the video, making it appear to thieves as though someone is watching them from inside.

A video that Issaquah police made shows a man wearing a Grinch hat coming up to a doorstep and grabbing a package. Suddenly Smith’s voice calls out through the video doorbell, “Hey, drop my package!”

“You can yell through that thing,” Smith said with a laugh.

Smith is optimistic that the video doorbells will make a difference in the rate of thefts this holiday season.

“Hopefully it will deter people when they see the Ring doorbell,” he said. “If not … at least we’ll have a video [of the suspect].”

Smith noted that people who are away from home all day could be targets for theft, and offered advice for stopping crime.

“If a package is unattended many hours, you could be a victim,” he said. “We really suggest that you try to forward packages to your place of business, family members or friends if you know you won’t be home.”

If this isn’t an option, he said, “Amazon dropboxes are a really great idea.” In Issaquah, Amazon lockers can be found at the Safeway on Gilman Boulevard and at the Sprint on East Lake Sammamish Parkway Southeast.

So far, police haven’t had reports of any criminals caught through the video doorbells, but Smith plans on periodically checking in with the homeowners who received them. The department currently has loaned out all of its video doorbells, but hopes to purchase more in the new year.

“We’re hoping that it grows and we can provide more of them,” Smith said.