WASHINGTON — There’s one last step homeowners can do to protect their gifts this season: Pay attention while taking out the trash. St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Department is reminding its online followers to think twice before throwing out the boxes for their new electronics and gaming systems this holiday. Similar to how delivered packages are vulnerable to theft before recipients bring them inside to wrap, officials say advertising the holiday haul, especially pricey electronics, at the recycling bin could catch a criminal’s eye. Police departments across the country are spreading the message on social media.

Don’t advertise! Break down boxes & put them in the appropriate bins so thieves are less tempted to after-Christmas shop in your home. pic.twitter.com/BuhMyrFsna

— CT State Police (@CT_STATE_POLICE) December 26, 2016

When recycling the boxes of new gifts, homeowners should collapse and fold them inside out, to prevent their house from becoming a burglar’s target, police say.