The Family Password
by Ed Sawicki
April 2024
When my children were young, we had a family password so they'd know whether to trust someone who claimed to be acting at their parent's request. They were taught they should run away from someone who told them they would take them home because Mom couldn't pick them up, for example, but didn't know the password.
It was a simple password consisting of two words that were easy to remember. Now that they're grown, we no longer need the family password. Right?
Wrong. We need them now more than ever, given how advanced Deep Fake technology is. Watch this video:
Imagine a scenario where you get a phone call or text from your grown child saying that he needs you to wire him money to get out of legal trouble or to pay kidnappers. Even if the voice sounds like his, if he doesn't give you the family password, you can assume the phone call is a fake—a scam.
It may be time to “upgrade” the password to something more adult and less likely to be guessed. It could involve near-homonyms, like “pickled hearing”.
Having a visual cue to help memorize it could help. As the photo at the top of the page suggests, it could be “whirling dervishes” thats unlikely for the bad guy to guess. From time to time, you should ensure that all family members remember the password. Perhaps at Thanksgiving dinner.