Danny Wheeler got a surprising message from his phone around 1 p.m. Tuesday.
Instead of a text or an email, it was an alert that his home was in the process of being robbed.
Wheeler, 30, opened up his phone to find an image of an unfamiliar man in his apartment on the Upper East Side in New York, according to the New York Post.
The image and alert came from Canary -- a home security device and smartphone app. It allows users to view a live video feed of their apartment and sends alerts when there is suspicious activity. A Canary security device costs $199 up front and an additional fee depending on which plan one picks.
When something suspicious happens in a home, users have two options, explained a Canary support representative. They can choose to activate the alarm on the Canary unit which can serve as a deterrent, or they can choose to alert the authorities.
In Tuesday's incident, Wheeler immediately alerted the authorities and rushed home, according to the New York Post. The burglars got away with one $80 bracelet, a spokesperson from New York's Police Department said.
However, by the time Wheeler had gotten home -- the burglars were gone. The two had been spotted by a vigilant neighbor who yelled at the two burglars and ran them off.
A video of the burglary shows the two robbers in pretty clear detail:
Wheeler handed over the evidence immediately to the police, who reportedly told him that they had seen one of the suspects previously.
"I pay stupid amounts of money to rent this apartment and a shoddy window is the reason [I'm] here right now," Wheeler said to Gothamist.
For all that fancy technology though, the two perpetrators are still at large as of Wednesday afternoon.
UPDATED on 9/17/2015 at 3:37 p.m. to further clarify the cost of a Canary unit.