Your Family Needs a Tech-Help Rule Before Someone Gets Scammed

Decide who provides technology help, how that help begins and what no legitimate helper will ever request.

Holiday visits often become informal technology-support appointments.

Someone needs help updating a phone. A password is not working. A printer has disconnected. A pop-up says the computer has a virus. An unfamiliar charge appears on an account.

The family member offering genuine help and the criminal pretending to offer help may use similar language: “I can fix that,” “Let me connect to your computer,” or “I need the code that just arrived.”

Your family needs a rule that makes the difference clear.

If You Read Only One Thing

Never grant remote access, share a password or provide a verification code because of an unexpected call, message, email or pop-up. Contact a trusted helper using the number you already have.

Your Action Steps

1. Choose the relatives or professionals who are approved technology helpers.

2. Decide how family members will request help.

3. Use known phone numbers or an existing family conversation to verify the request.

4. Establish that no helper will unexpectedly ask for remote access.

5. Agree that passwords and verification codes will not be shared.

6. Explain every change before it is made.

7. Keep a simple record of software installed, settings changed and unresolved concerns.

Why Real Help and Fraudulent Help Can Look Similar

A family member experiencing a technology problem may not know whether a warning is legitimate.

A scammer can display a convincing company logo, provide a case number, claim to see a problem on the device and sound patient or professional. The person receiving the message may believe they are following responsible instructions.

The Federal Trade Commission warns that legitimate technology companies will not unexpectedly contact you to report a problem with your computer. Genuine security pop-ups also will not instruct you to call a telephone number for help.

Your family rule should make verification routine—not something anyone feels embarrassed to request.

Choose Approved Helpers

Decide in advance who may provide technology assistance.

That might include:

• An adult child

• A sibling

• A trusted friend

• A known local professional

• The official support service for a device or account

Record the helper’s correct phone number somewhere the family member can find without relying on an incoming message.

If the family is contacted by anyone else, the answer is simple: stop and verify through an approved person.

Make Help Begin Through a Known Route

Technology help should begin because the family member requested it through a known contact method.

For example:

• Call the helper using a number already stored in the phone.

• Use an existing family group conversation.

• Visit the company’s official website directly.

• Use the support option inside the official application.

Do not use the telephone number, link or contact information supplied by the unexpected warning.

A familiar name on caller ID is not sufficient proof. Caller ID can be manipulated.

Set Clear Rules for Remote Access

Remote-access software allows another person to view or control a device. It can be useful in a legitimate support relationship, but it gives criminals an opportunity to access files, accounts and financial information.

Your family rule should state:

• No remote access in response to an unexpected contact

• No installation of unfamiliar software without verification

• No movement of money during a support session

• No gift-card or cryptocurrency payments

• No sharing of verification codes

• No secrecy from family or trusted advisers

• Permission to stop the session at any time

A trustworthy helper will not object to these rules.

Explain Before Changing Anything

Genuine assistance should preserve the family member’s understanding and independence.

Before changing a setting or installing software, the helper should explain:

• What is being changed

• Why the change is necessary

• What the person may notice afterward

• Whether the change can be reversed

• Whether any new cost or recurring subscription is involved

Afterward, record the change. This reduces confusion during the next problem and helps another trusted helper understand the device.

Make It Safe to Pause

Scammers create urgency. They may claim that money is disappearing, the device will stop working or the person will be arrested if they do not act immediately.

Your family rule should make pausing automatic:

“I do not make technology or financial decisions during unexpected calls. I will contact my trusted helper independently.”

No one should be criticized for asking for verification. The safer family is the one in which people feel comfortable saying, “I am not sure.”

Outside Resources

• Federal Trade Commission: How to spot, avoid and report tech-support scams

• Federal Trade Commission: Pass It On—Tech-support scams

Haven Smith & Company Resources

• Learn practical scam-recognition and account-protection habits through the Digital Safety course.

• Use the Digital Life Management Workbook™ to identify trusted contacts and important devices.

• Bring family technology-safety questions to a Digital Life Strategy Session.

• Not sure where to begin? Take the free two-minute quiz and get the one thing to do next.

Send one sentence to your family today: “If you receive an unexpected technology warning, call me at the number you already have before doing anything.”