The most secure safes for your home

If you fear someone running off with your valuables (who doesn't?) an extra-secure safe might be on your shopping list. Safes can keep valuables and important documents protected, plus keep children, visitors and burglars away from your private items. Some are even fire- and flood-safe. Ahead, the most secure safes for your home in 2023.

Top products in this article

Mycube Biocube Professional, $1,275

Jinxnobi extra large safe, $420 after coupon (reduced from $450)

Guveli fireproof wall safe (3.93"D x 14.5"W x 43"H), $220 after coupon (reduced from $240)

Related: How we choose our products

Explore a wide selection of safes available in different sizes and price ranges. With security as our top priority, we've found larger, heavier safes that are harder for someone to easily make off with. These highly regarded safes have a four-star rating or higher, and many are currently on sale. Continue reading to find the most secure safes for your home in 2023.

It's time to protect your things. Invest in a safe that can store important documents, precious jewelry, photos, money and more.  

This large safe has a fingerprint-scan sensor that stores up to 10 fingerprints. It weighs 100 pounds and has bolt holes, plus an auto-locking door. Inside, find adjustable shelves and a lock box. This safe comes in three colors.

Mycube Biocube Professional (4.6 cu. ft.), $1,275

This 83.5-pound safe comes in six sizes and contains a waterproof, fireproof safe bag inside. It has a digital lock, but comes with backup keys. It even has a tamper and motion-sensitive alarm.

Jinxnobi extra large safe (6.05 cu. ft.), $420 after coupon (reduced from $450)

This large, fireproof safe is thin, so you can hide it behind artwork. Its interior is lined with fleece to keep your valuables from getting scratched up. It has three removable shelves, plus hooks for hanging items. It has a digital lock and comes with an emergency key. Find this safe in three sizes and two colors. 

Guveli fireproof wall safe (3.93"D x 14.5"W x 43"H), $220 after coupon (reduced from $240)

Walmart has this stunning deal on a bestselling Honeywell safe right now. 

It's waterproof and can withstand a fire of up to 1,700 degrees Fahrenheit for one hour. This safe locks with a key.

Honeywell safe (.39 cu. ft.), $97 (reduced from $200)

This steel safe with a combination lock is both water- and fire-resistant. It protects your valuables in a fire for one hour (up to 1,700 degrees Fahrenheit) and is water-resistant in up to 8 inches of water for up to 24 hours. 

This 86-pound safe even comes with a dual key that gives you the ability to disable the primary lock, even if other people know the combination.

SentrySafe fire-resistant and water-resistant safe (1.23 cu. ft,), $229

This affordable, alloy steel safe by AmazonBasics comes in seven sizes. Choose from a fingerprint lock or a keypad lock. It comes with two emergency override keys to protect against forgotten passcodes or dead batteries.

The 4.6-star-rated safe is a No. 1 Amazon bestseller.

Amazon Basics cubic feet steel security safe (.5 cu. ft.), $65 (regularly $75)

This large, 217-pound safe has an electronic lock with two override keys and comes with a bolt-down kit. This 4.2-star-rated safe features a carpeted interior (35.72" x 19.4" x 11.7") and two multi-position shelves.

Sentry Safe executive fire security safe (4.7 cu. ft.), $958

Carolin Lehmann is an expert in health, fitness, furniture, apparel, gift guides and books for CBS Essentials. She's always testing new products to recommend. Some of her current favorites include Stanley cups, Alo Yoga workout sets and the Cuzen matcha maker.

How To Easily Set Up Secure OTA Firmware Updates On ESP32

After an electronic IoT device has been deployed into the world, it may be necessary to reprogram or update it. But if physical access to the device (or devices) is troublesome or no longer possible, that’s a problem.

Fortunately, over-the-air (OTA) firmware updates are a thing, allowing embedded devices to be reprogrammed over their wireless data connection instead of with a physical hardware device. Security is of course a concern, and thankfully [Refik] explains how to set up a basic framework so that ESP32 OTA updates can happen securely, allowing one to deploy devices and still push OTA updates in confidence.

[Refik] begins by setting up a web server using Ubuntu Linux, and sets up HTTPS using a free SSL certificate from Let’s Encrypt, but a self-signed SSL certificate is also an option. Once that is done, the necessary fundamentals are in place to support deploying OTA updates in a secure manner. A bit more configuration, and the rest is up to the IoT devices themselves. [Refik] explains how to set things up using the esp32FOTA library, but we’ve also seen other ways to make OTA simple to use.

You can watch a simple secure OTA firmware update happen in the video, embedded below. There are a lot of different pieces working together, so [Refik] also provides a second video for those viewers who prefer a walkthrough to help make everything clear. Watch them both, after the break.

From SECURE Act to SECURE 2.0: Is Your Estate Plan Safe?

The SECURE Act of 2019 brought about significant changes to Americans’ retirement and estate plans, including raising the RMD age and replacing the stretch IRA with the 10-year rule. Before the dust settled on those changes, Congress passed the second version, SECURE 2.0 Act, which will continue to put existing estate plans in question as families navigate the impact of these two booming pieces of legislation.

We are often asked, “When is the right time to start planning?” In light of these sweeping changes and the ever-evolving landscape, the time to jump in is now. However, it is not enough to simply establish a plan today and hope it will stand the test of time; rather, it is more critical than ever to surround yourself with a team of trusted professionals who can guide you through the changes as they come.

So, what exactly did the two SECURE Acts do to affect your retirement?

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Prior to the passage of the SECURE Act of 2019, individuals who had contributed to qualified tax-deferred retirement accounts such as 401(k)s, IRAs, 403(b)s, SEPs, SIMPLEs, etc., were required to begin taking systematic required minimum distributions (RMDs) from those accounts and pay the taxes beginning at age 70½. With the 2019 legislation, that age was raised to 72, giving individuals more time to grow their money before taking distributions. The result was also more tax dollars paid to the IRS due to the now-higher account balances.

Another significant change from SECURE Act of 2019 was the abolition of what was known as a stretch IRA, whereby an account owner could leave all accrued IRA money to their beneficiaries, who could take RMDs from the account until they passed, leaving the principal in the account for the next generation, with that pattern repeating for many generations.

A relatively modest account could eventually benefit many generations of a family by deferring taxes over many decades. However, post-2019, most beneficiaries of qualified retirement accounts are now subject to the 10-year rule. Apart from spouses and disabled or dependent children, almost all recipients of such accounts will be required to fully deplete them and pay all taxes due within 10 years of inheriting. The result of an accelerated distribution has undoubtedly been a larger portion of all accounts going to pay taxes, rather than blessing the intended recipients.

Less than four years after the passage of its predecessor, the SECURE 2.0 Act came along and moved the target again. The new RMD rules increased the age from 72 to 73 until 2033, when it will be raised yet again, to age 75.

Another important change is that the penalty for missing an RMD is reduced by half. Previously, an individual who failed to take their RMD in the necessary calendar year was charged a 50% penalty in addition to the RMD amount. For example, a missed $2,000 RMD would result in being required to take an additional $1,000. That penalty under the new rule is now 25%, or $500 in the previous example. Additionally, an individual who missed the RMD but catches and remedies it within one year will face only a 10% penalty.

Prior to the SECURE 2.0 Act, qualified retirement accounts that, for whatever reason, failed to end up in the hands of the appropriate beneficiaries would escheat, or default, to the state. The new rule requires the creation of a retirement savings account lost-and-found database that beneficiaries will be able to search when their loved one passes so those funds can be claimed.

One change made by the SECURE 2.0 Act has the ability to positively impact younger generations and help set them up for retirement by allowing for the conversation of 529 savings plans for education expenses into Roth IRAs for the named beneficiary.

Not all 529 beneficiaries end up needing or using those funds for education, causing those accounts to lose value due to penalties at withdrawal. Under the new rule, any unused portion of these plans can be converted into Roth IRAs for the child or grandchild who ended up not needing the money to pay for their education.

The passage of the SECURE Acts presents some challenges and some opportunities in estate planning. The 10-year rule drastically reduces the ability to transfer wealth from one generation to the next.

Families who previously established trusts to hold their IRA accounts for the purpose of stretching those accounts across generations will need to have those trusts reviewed to see if they are compliant with the SECURE Act requirements. Most will likely need to be updated to provide for distribution within the 10-year time limit now imposed on inherited non-spousal IRAs.

On the other hand, families are being given more time to grow their retirement accounts before taking distributions, which presents an opportunity to grow them faster. The reduction in penalties for missed RMDs will help those inevitably left scratching their heads at when exactly they have to start taking distributions with all the changes.

And formerly lost funds will now be more likely to end up in the intended hands through the lost-and-found database.

Younger Americans can now benefit from starting tax-free retirement in the form of Roth IRAs when they find themselves the beneficiary of unused 529 funds.

All in all, these two acts exemplify the need to incorporate tax planning into your retirement, legal and estate planning. Strategically defunding qualified accounts or converting to Roth accounts may result in a significant tax savings for families upon inheritance under the new 10-year rule. It will be important for families to consider whether such transfers will leave their assets exposed to the spend-down process relating to nursing homes. If so, then having a protective trust conservation will also be essential.

The most prudent thing is to have a legal, financial and tax professional review your existing plan to ensure you know how your specific plan will be impacted. We frequently find that families are unaware of the impact their planning will have on generations to come, so educating yourself now will help secure the peace of mind that good estate planning is designed to bring. 

This article was written by and presents the views of our contributing adviser, not the Kiplinger editorial staff. You can check adviser records with the SEC or with FINRA.