Safety Tips & Scam Warnings — AI for Everyday Life

🛑 The One Rule That Never Changes

No legitimate organization ever asks you to pay using gift cards.

Not the IRS. Not Medicare. Not your electric company. Not your bank. Not a grandchild who says they're in jail. If anyone — by phone, email, or text — asks you to buy gift cards to pay a bill or get someone out of trouble, stop immediately. It is a scam. Every time. No exceptions.

Make a plan with your family

A family safe word: Pause. Ask. Call back.

AI can imitate a familiar voice. If a distressed caller sounds like your child, grandchild, or another loved one, check who is calling before acting on a request for money or private information.

Pause. Take a breath. Urgency, secrecy, and a familiar voice are not proof of identity.
Ask. Ask the caller to tell you your family's private code word or phrase. Do not say it first or offer hints.
Call back. End the call and dial a saved, trusted number. Do not use a new number supplied by the caller. Even a correct phrase is only one check.

Choose your phrase before an emergency

Agree privately on something memorable that is not a birthday, pet name, or public fact. Share it only with trusted family members and replace it if it becomes known to others. Never enter the actual phrase into an AI tool or this website, and do not write it on your fridge card.

Cannot verify the caller? Contact another trusted person. Not knowing the phrase does not establish whether someone is safe or in danger. If you believe there is immediate danger, call your local emergency number; in the U.S., call 911.

Practice together

Use a pretend phrase for a short role-play. Practice pausing, asking, and finding the trusted number you would call. Do not make real emergency calls during practice.

Download the family safety fridge card (PDF)

Sources: FTC family emergency scam guidance and FBI family code word guidance. Checked September 2026.

🚨 Warning Signs of a Scam

🔴
Urgent pressure to act now Real organizations give you time to think. Scammers create panic — "Your account will be closed in 24 hours!"
🔴
Gift card payment requests Google Play cards, iTunes cards, Amazon gift cards — no real bill collector ever accepts these.
🔴
Unexpected prize or refund "You've won $5,000 — just pay the processing fee first." You didn't win. There is no prize.
🔴
"Keep this secret" Any caller who tells you not to tell your family is a scammer. Real businesses never say this.
🔴
AI-cloned voice calls You may hear your grandchild's voice saying they're in trouble. It may be AI-generated. Always hang up and call them directly on their real number.

🛡️ Your Protection Rules

📵
Hang up and call back yourself Received an alarming call from your bank or government? Hang up. Look up the real number yourself and call it directly. Never trust a number a caller gives you.
⏸️
Pause before sharing anything online Before forwarding a news story, a health claim, or a warning message — wait. Check if it's true first.
👨‍👩‍👧
Tell a trusted person first If anything feels wrong — an urgent call, an unexpected email, an offer that sounds too good — tell a family member or friend before doing anything.
🔒
Protect your personal information Social Security number, Medicare ID, bank account numbers, and passwords should never be shared over the phone, by email, or typed into any AI tool.
🔍
Verify health information AI can explain things but can also be wrong. For anything affecting your health or medications, always confirm with your doctor or pharmacist.

💊 AI & Health Safety

✅
AI can explain — not prescribe Use AI to understand a diagnosis, prepare questions for your doctor, or learn about a condition. Never use it to change your medications on your own.
✅
Trusted health websites mayoclinic.org — nih.gov — cdc.gov — All end in .gov or are well-established institutions. Be careful with random health blogs.
❌
AI health scams Beware of ads claiming AI has "cured" cancer or discovered a miracle treatment. These are almost always scams designed to sell supplements or steal money.

✅ If Something Goes Wrong

1️⃣
Don't be embarrassed These scams fool very smart people. Scammers are professionals who do this all day long. Act quickly — that's all that matters.
2️⃣
Call your bank immediately Use the number on the back of your card. Ask them to freeze your account if you shared any financial information.
3️⃣
Report the fraud FTC: reportfraud.ftc.gov — AARP Helpline: 1-877-908-3360 — Your local police can also take a report.
4️⃣
Gift cards: call the card company If you bought gift cards for a scammer, call the gift card company immediately. Sometimes the funds can still be frozen.

📞 Quick Reference Numbers

Report Fraud

🔗 FTC: reportfraud.ftc.gov
📞 AARP Fraud Helpline: 1-877-908-3360
📞 FBI Internet Crime: ic3.gov
📞 Social Security Fraud: 1-800-269-0271

Trusted Information

🏥 Health: mayoclinic.org / nih.gov
🏛️ Medicare: medicare.gov
🏛️ Social Security: ssa.gov
💰 IRS: irs.gov (never calls you first)

Safe AI Tool Addresses

🤖 ChatGPT: chat.openai.com
💡 Claude: claude.ai
🔷 Copilot: copilot.microsoft.com
🔍 Perplexity: perplexity.ai

Never Give These Out

❌ Social Security number
❌ Medicare ID or insurance number
❌ Bank account or routing numbers
❌ Passwords or PINs of any kind