Family Tech Visit Kit

Going home for the holidays? Spend 2 hours making your parents' phones much harder to scam.

Answer 3 questions and get a checklist in priority order: blocking scam calls, backing up photos, emergency access. It fits the time you actually have.

Build our checklist

Three quick questions

1What do they use?

A nickname is fine, like "Mom" or "Dad". No real names needed.

Their phone
Their computer
2What worries you most?

Pick as many as you like. These go to the top of the list.

3How much time do you have together?

Hands-on time with them and their phone, not the whole visit.

Family Tech Visit Kit, $12

  • ✓ Step-by-step guides for their exact phone
  • ✓ Printable fridge card and family code word card
  • ✓ Shared checklist for you and your siblings
  • ✓ 30-day follow-up script
Get the kit, $12

Use it for both parents, all season.

Also inside: an account list that never asks for passwords, and a 10-text "scam or real?" quiz to do together. Guides cover iPhone, Android, Mac and Windows.

A page from the guide

Anywhere · 10 minutes · Any phone

Agree on a family code word

Written November 2026

Why: Scammers can copy a voice from a short video clip and call pretending to be you: "Mom, I'm in trouble, please don't tell Dad." A word only your family knows lets them check in two seconds.

  1. Sit down together and pick a word or short phrase. Make it something silly you'll all remember but nobody could guess, like "purple waffle". Not a pet's name or street name. Those are online.
  2. Write it on the code word card and put the card in their wallet. Don't text it or email it.
  3. Practice once. You call them and pretend to be in trouble. They ask for the word.
  4. Agree on the rule: no word, no money, no matter how real the voice sounds.
  5. Tell your siblings and any grandkids old enough to call.
Say this: "If anyone ever calls sounding like me and needs money fast, ask for our word. If they can't say it, hang up and call me on my usual number. I promise I won't be upset."

Watch out: The caller should say the word first. If they ask "What's our word again?", that's a scam.

Questions

Will this work on Mom's old phone?

Mostly, yes. About half the plan isn't about the phone at all: the code word, the credit freeze, bank alerts and the account list work no matter what she carries.

  • iPhone: Recovery Contact needs iOS 15 or later, Legacy Contact iOS 15.2 or later, and Stolen Device Protection iOS 17.3 or later. To check, open Settings, then General, then About.
  • Android: spam call filtering, Google Photos backup and emergency info work on most phones from the last several years. Menus differ by maker (Samsung, Pixel, Motorola), so the guides cover the common ones and tell you what to look for on the rest.

If her phone can't install updates anymore, the guide says so plainly. That phone is now the weakest point, and a modest newer phone might be the best gift this year.

I don't know what phone they have.

Pick "Not sure." Your plan starts with a 5-minute step to find out, plus everything that works on any phone. Once you know, change your answer and the plan adds the right steps.

Do you store any of our information?

No. The free checklist lives in your browser on this device. The shared checklist in the kit is a spreadsheet you own and share with your siblings. Never put passwords, PINs, Social Security numbers or account numbers in it.

I'm not very techy. Can I do this?

Yes. Every step says exactly what to tap and what you should see when it worked. Most tasks take 5 to 15 minutes.

My siblings and I visit at different times.

That's what the shared checklist is for. Each of you ticks off what you did and leaves a note, so the second visit picks up where the first left off.

Is this just for the US?

The phone and computer steps work anywhere. The credit freeze, carrier scam blocking and the phone numbers on the fridge card are for the US.