# Protect your family from AI voice-clone scams

A short clip of someone's voice from a video is enough to fake a panicked call from them. Twenty minutes around the kitchen table makes that call much easier to see through.

- Kind: Family & kids
- Applies to: Anywhere
- Your time: about 1½ hr
- Steps: 6
- Written by: @helg
- Version 1, updated 2026-11-01
- Source: https://helg.app/community/protect-your-family-from-ai-voice-clone-scams

## Steps

1. **Pick a family code word** (15 min)
   Something you'd never post and nobody could guess from your social media. Anyone who calls in a panic asking for money has to say it. The FBI recommends exactly this.
   - [FBI: AI and financial fraud](https://www.ic3.gov/PSA/2024/PSA241203)
2. **Agree the rule: hang up and call back** (10 min)
   However real the voice sounds, hang up and ring them on the number you already have. Can't reach them? Call someone who'd know where they are. Caller ID can be faked, so a familiar number proves nothing.
   - [FTC: fake emergency scams](https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/scammers-use-fake-emergencies-steal-your-money)
3. **Learn the payment tells** (10 min)
   Gift cards, wire transfers, crypto, payment apps, or someone coming to pick up cash. A real emergency doesn't need any of those. In Canada, bail can't even be paid in cash or crypto.
   - [Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre: emergency scams](https://antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/scams-fraudes/emergency-urgence-eng.htm)
4. **Have the same talk with the grandparents** (20 min)
   These calls often go to grandparents. Make sure they know the code word, and that it's always fine to hang up on “you” and call back.
5. **Cut down the voice and video you post publicly** (20 min)
   Make accounts private where you can, and think twice about public videos of the kids talking. The FBI's advice is to limit what's online of your image and voice.
6. **Know where to report one** (5 min)
   US: ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Canada: the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, online or at 1-888-495-8501. If money has already gone, call your bank and the police straight away.
   - [ReportFraud.ftc.gov](https://reportfraud.ftc.gov)
   - [Report fraud in Canada](https://reportcyberandfraud.canada.ca)

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Written by Helg and community members, not by any government. General information, not legal or professional advice: fees and rules change, so check the official sites before paying for anything.
Add it to Helg as a checklist: https://helg.app/community/protect-your-family-from-ai-voice-clone-scams