If the words don't match
A failed verification is not a detail: it is the only information you need. There is nothing to guess, nothing to decide in a hurry. The app guides you step by step; here is the same path, to read calmly.
Don't say any of your words
It is up to the caller to announce theirs, both at once. Never confirm one word on its own, never complete, never "give a hint" to anyone. Someone who doesn't know the words will try to make you say them.
Give nothing, do nothing
No money, no code, no address, no photo of a card. Even if the voice is right, even if the person cries, even if they say they are about to be cut off. One sentence is enough: "I'll call you back to take care of your problem."
Write down what needs sorting out, then hang up
Ask: "Tell me in one sentence what needs sorting out." Write it down. Then hang up yourself. Nothing gets decided during this call.
Call back on their saved number
Dial yourself the number you know, the one in your address book. An incoming call is not your callback, even if it shows their number: a number can be spoofed. The callback is you calling, and nothing else.
- They answer and both their words are on your screen: it really is them, take care of what you wrote down.
- Someone else answers: ask them to have your relative call you back, without mentioning the call you received.
- Nobody answers: try again in a few minutes. Look for someone who can see them in person, a neighbour, a colleague, a relative.
If what you wrote down cannot wait
A hospital admission, someone to pick up, a deadline within the hour: don't wait for them to call back. Contact the organisation yourself through its official contact details, never through a number given during the call. In case of danger, call the emergency services.
The app shows the emergency numbers of the country you are in, for more than two hundred countries.
Someone is calling "on behalf of" your relative?
A carer, a police officer, a colleague: don't ask them for your relative's words, and don't accept words they would relay. Write down who they say they are, for which organisation, where your relative is, what needs doing and by when. Hang up, then check yourself with the organisation.
The kitchen memo
Print this page: the paper version keeps only the essentials, in large print. The relative who set up the app fills in the last line by hand.
1. I never say my words. It is up to them to tell me theirs, both at once.
2. Both their words are on my screen? It really is them. If not, I give nothing and I do nothing.
3. I say "I'll call you back", and I hang up myself.
4. I call back on the number I know. A call that comes in is not my callback.
5. In case of danger: 17 or 112 in France, 112 anywhere in Europe.