Trusted contacts are an important feature offered by many online services to help keep your account secure. By adding trusted contacts, you give permission to the service provider to contact those people if they notice suspicious activity or can’t reach you. This provides an extra layer of account safety and peace of mind. But how exactly do you go about adding and managing trusted contacts? Let’s take a closer look.
What are trusted contacts?
Trusted contacts, sometimes called emergency contacts or verification contacts, are people you personally know and trust. They can be family members, close friends, or coworkers.
You select these trusted individuals and add them to your account with a service provider. Then, if the provider notices any suspicious activity like an unusual login location, they can reach out to your trusted contacts. The contacts can help verify if it’s really you accessing the account.
Adding trusted contacts gives the provider someone else to contact if they can’t get a hold of you for any reason. This helps safeguard your account from fraudulent activity. It’s an extra layer of security on top of traditional methods like passwords and two-factor authentication.
Common services that use trusted contacts
Many major online services now offer trusted contacts as an option, including:
- Apple
- Microsoft
- Snapchat
Banks and financial services also often have a similar emergency contact or verification contact feature. The concept is the same – providing a backup contact to help secure your account.
Benefits of adding trusted contacts
There are a few key advantages to using trusted contacts:
- Account security – If suspicious activity is detected, your trusted contacts can verify it’s really you trying to access the account.
- Password recovery – Your contacts can help you recover or reset your password if you get locked out of your account.
- Emergency access – Your contacts can potentially assist law enforcement or medical personnel in an emergency situation to gain access.
- Peace of mind – Knowing your account has an extra layer of protection provides comfort and peace of mind.
The bottom line is trusted contacts help make your accounts more secure and recoverable. They provide an added safety net beyond just relying on passwords.
Adding trusted contacts
The exact steps to add trusted or emergency contacts vary between different services. But the general process is similar across most major providers:
Find the trusted contacts page
Each service will have a specific page or setting where you can manage and add trusted contacts. This is usually located under account security or privacy settings.
For example:
- Facebook – Settings > Security and Login > Trusted Contacts
- Google – google.com/accounts > Sign-in & Security > Trusted Contacts
- Apple – Settings > Password & Security > Account Recovery > Add Recovery Contact
Consult the provider’s help documentation to find their trusted contacts page.
Enter contact info
Once in the trusted contacts page, you can enter the contact information for each person you want to add. Typically you’ll need to provide:
- Full name
- Email address
- Phone number
Some services allow entering more than one phone number or email per contact. This gives them multiple ways to reach each trusted contact if needed.
Send confirmation request
After entering the contact information, the service will send a confirmation request to each person. This ensures they consent to being your trusted contact and verifies they own that email or phone number.
The request email might say something like “Alice has added you as a trusted contact. Click here to confirm.”
Contact confirms
Once your trusted contact receives the confirmation request, they simply have to click the confirmation link or button. This gives their consent and completes adding them as an official trusted contact.
Considerations when adding contacts
When deciding who to add as trusted contacts, keep these tips in mind:
- Choose people you know well and trust – Don’t just add casual acquaintances.
- Consider family members – Spouses, parents, siblings, or adult children often make good trusted contacts.
- Pick reliable friends – Close, responsible friends are ideal candidates.
- Avoid contacts who travel frequently – Harder to reach in an emergency.
- Add backup numbers/emails – Gives more ways to reach them if needed.
- Keep contacts up-to-date – Update if their contact info changes.
- Remove old contacts – Delete contacts that are no longer relevant.
2-3 trusted contacts per service is usually sufficient. It’s also a good idea to inform your contacts that you’ve added them. This avoids any surprise if the service contacts them.
Managing trusted contacts
Over time you may need to update, remove, or replace existing trusted contacts. Here are some tips for managing contacts:
Edit contact information
If one of your contact’s phone number, email, or other info changes, you can edit it through the trusted contacts page. There should be an edit button or icon next to each contact.
Remove a contact
If you want to remove a trusted contact, look for a remove or delete button by their name on the management page. Removing a contact means the service can no longer contact them for account verification.
Review contacts regularly
It’s a good idea to review your trusted contacts at least annually. Make sure their information is still valid and that they are still people you trust. Remove any contacts that are outdated or no longer relevant.
Confirm updates with new emails
If you significantly update a contact’s information, the service may send them a new confirmation request. This ensures the contact approves the changes. Expect to receive confirmation emails if you change their email address or phone number.
Add new contacts
You can add additional trusted contacts at any time through the management page. Just use the “add contact” button and enter their details. The service will email them a confirmation request.
Keeping your trusted contacts updated ensures you always have several trusted people who can help safeguard your accounts. Treat it like you would emergency contacts and keep it current.
When are trusted contacts notified?
Trusted contacts receive notifications under two main scenarios:
Suspicious activity
If the service detects suspicious or unusual account activity, they may contact trusted contacts. For example, a login from an unknown location or device. They can help verify if it was really you accessing the account.
Account recovery
Trusted contacts may be contacted if you forget your password or get locked out of your account. They can assist in verifying your identity to recover access to the account.
The exact triggers for contacting trusted contacts depend on each service’s policies. But it’s generally limited to suspicious scenarios or recovery issues to avoid pestering your contacts unnecessarily.
You may also be able to proactively request your trusted contacts for assistance in some cases. For example, if you lose access to your two-factor authentication methods.
What information is shared?
When contacted, the service will share limited details with your trusted contacts:
- That suspicious activity was detected or you need help recovering your account
- Instructions for how to confirm it’s really you trying to access the account
They should NOT share sensitive details like your password or specific account activity without your consent.
Confirming your identity as a trusted contact
If a service provider contacts you as a trusted contact, here are some things you may need to do to verify the account owner’s identity:
Answer security questions
You may be asked to answer security questions to validate it’s really your friend or family member. For example, confirming the street they grew up on or their first car model.
Provide confirmation code
The account owner may give you a temporary confirmation code to provide to the service. This code acts as proof you’re communicating directly.
Receive authorization email/text
You may get an email or text from the service asking you to confirm the identity of the account holder. Just follow the provided instructions.
Discuss recent activity
The service rep may ask you to confirm recent account activity details to verify it aligns with what the account holder has done. However, they should not reveal sensitive data.
Reset password
In a recovery scenario, you may be asked to reset the account password temporarily. This allows the account holder to regain access.
In most cases, the steps are simple actions like confirming info or entering codes. As a trusted contact, assist promptly when contacted, but be wary of any unusual requests.
Trusted contact request scams
Unfortunately, scammers may try to abuse the trusted contact system in phishing scams. Here are signs a trusted contact request may be a scam:
- You don’t recognize the person requesting to add you.
- The request comes from a suspicious email address.
- They ask you to provide sensitive personal information.
- They want you to click strange links or download files.
- Requests for money or payments.
- Threats or urgency to add you right away.
If something seems suspicious, contact your friend directly via a known method to confirm they really added you. And reject any requests that seem scammy or put your data at risk.
Trusted contact alternatives
While most major providers now offer trusted contacts, some services still lack this feature. If adding trusted contacts isn’t an option, here are a few alternatives to consider:
Emergency codes
Some services let you generate single-use emergency access codes. You can print or store these securely in case you lose account access.
Password manager emergency access
Many password managers like 1Password allow setting up an emergency contact to grant account access if needed.
Share login details securely
You can give trusted individuals your login details to certain accounts in extreme emergencies via a secure channel like an encrypted USB drive.
Legal documents
Formal legal documents like a power of attorney may allow someone to access accounts on your behalf if necessary.
Multi-person accounts
Some accounts support adding additional authorized users, like shared family accounts.
While not a perfect substitute, these options allow designating trusted individuals to aid account security and recovery in a pinch.
Conclusion
Adding trusted contacts provides an important extra layer of protection and peace of mind for your online accounts. Take the time to add several up-to-date trusted contacts to any major services that support them. Just be sure those individuals are people you know and trust.
With your trusted contacts in place, you can recover from situations like lost passwords or suspicious logins much more easily. And you have the confidence that your accounts have enhanced security through your trusted contacts as a backup verification method.
Handling trusted contact requests properly and securely gives online providers an additional way to confirm your identity. This helps safeguard your accounts from compromise and fraudulent activity.
Overall, trusted contacts are a useful feature to consider taking advantage of. They give you added account security, easier recovery when locked out, and reduced risk – providing greater confidence and safety for your online presence.