The Secret Codewords That Scammers Hate

A mother in Buffalo, New York, got a phone call that sounded like her teenage son crying in terror. A stranger then came on the line and demanded $7,500 in cash, threatening to hurt her son if she didn't pay. It turned out the voice wasn't her son at all — it was a fake created by artificial intelligence. This kind of crime is called a deepfake scam, and experts say it is happening to families all over the world.

Elizabeth Benz was driving to meet the stranger when her other son tracked down John at a football game. John was completely safe, and the panicked voice on the phone had been made by an AI program that copied his voice. 'I couldn't believe it,' Benz said. She never could have told the difference just by listening.

Experts warn that AI technology has gotten so good that you can no longer trust your ears or eyes alone. Criminals are using these tools to trick people on a massive scale. In 2025, Americans lost an estimated $148.2 billion to online scams and crimes — a jump of nearly 26 percent from the year before. AI-powered scams made up about $6.3 billion of that total, and experts say the numbers keep growing fast.

So what can families do to protect themselves? The answer is surprisingly simple: create a secret codeword. If someone calls claiming to be a family member in danger, you ask for the codeword, and a scammer won't know it. Hany Farid, one of the world's top experts on deepfakes, says he and his wife use a password for exactly this reason.

Choosing a good codeword is important, so pick something easy to remember but hard for a stranger to guess. Inside jokes or funny family memories work really well. You don't need to use the codeword for every single call — only when something seems off or unusual. If a family member calls saying they've been in an accident and need money right away, that's the moment to ask.

Here's the tricky part: Benz's family already had a codeword when the scam call came in, but she forgot to use it. 'These scams get you to an active place of panic where you can't think straight,' she said. That's exactly what scammers count on — getting you so scared that your brain stops working clearly. Knowing the codeword isn't enough by itself, so you also need to practice staying calm.

Lawyer Gary Schildhorn from Philadelphia nearly fell for a deepfake scam in 2023 and now teaches people how to spot the warning signs. He says there are three big red flags to watch for. First, scammers always create urgency — everything must happen right now. Second, they ask for untraceable payments like gift cards or cash, and third, they try to keep you from talking to anyone else.

Brian Long, co-founder of a company that builds security training programs, says the way you react matters just as much as knowing the codeword. 'You need to train your mental model to prepare for this scenario,' he said. Talk with your family about the plan before anything happens, because rehearsing even once can make a huge difference in a real emergency. The plan is simple: stay calm, ask for the password, and check with someone you trust before doing anything.