According to the Loudoun County's False Alarms Ordinance, Chapter 655, a false alarm is any alarm, whether audible or silent, to which the responding deputy finds no evidence or situation requiring a response by law enforcement, such as an attempted crime, a crime in progress or a crime that has just occurred.
A false alarm includes a site where one or more doors or windows are found unsecured and there is no evidence of unlawful entry. Alarms that are activated due to a power outage are also considered false. Silent robbery alarm set-off by owners or employees to report an incident other than a robbery is also a false alarm.
Other examples of false alarm events include: