What Is a Dead Man’s Switch and How to Set It Up?
A dead man’s switch has often been brought up in movies as an interesting plot twist when a character dies, and as a result, some kind of backup plan gets initiated. This exists in several forms, and as a concept, it has been used in the military, government, machinery, public transport, and of course, as a form of software. With that said, let’s understand what is a dead man’s switch, along with a few examples of how it is used. Then, we will go through the steps to set up a dead man’s switch.
What Is a Dead Man’s Switch?
A dead man’s switch refers to a pre-engineered contraption, either mechanical or electronic, which gets triggered in the event of the user’s death, or if they do not respond as per the defined rule set. So, it can be programmed so that if the user does not respond every 24 hours (a hypothetical example), the switch gets triggered and activate whatever the user has programmed it to do in such an event. A few examples are below:
How Does Dead Man Switch Work?
A dead man’s switch has been made in both mechanical & electronic forms, as mentioned above. To explain how it works, I’ll be taking the example of an electronic variant developed byStochastic Technologies, which you can use yourself even today. It is available to configure onthis website. But before we show you how to set it up, let’s go over the tool’s functionality so that you can understand how a dead man’s switch works:
While they assure that their service is secure, they flat outdo not recommendyou to use it if you are awhistlebloweror have extremely sensitive information.
How to Set Up a Dead Man’s Switch
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First, go to the Dead Man’s Switchwebsitehere. Enter your email address in the dialog box. Then, click on the “Log in using email” button.
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Next, it’s time to log in to the email you entered above and access the dashboard, so you can start writing messages.
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After you access the login link, click on “Write a new message” to get started.
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Enter your recipients’ email IDs (up to two on the free plan), making sure to separate them with a comma (,). Then, enter your message and specify the interval. Depending on how you configure this, the service will email you accordingly. If you do not respond, the messages will be sent to the designated recipients. After configuring everything, click onSave Message.
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Great, your dead man’s switch is now configured and set up. Do look into the pricing if you’d like to add more people who will receive your message, or if you want to set custom intervals.
Frequently Asked Questions
The main function of the dead man switch is to ensure that the necessary protocols are automatically followed, in the event of human absence. The dead man switch is often configured to require human input.
Engineers responsible for trains and other public transportation coined the term “dead man’s switch” a long time ago, and it was inspired by what the term implies. Back then, it was used to automatically prevent a disaster from happening, if the train operator suddenly becomes unavailable.
Beebom Staff
Bringing the latest in technology, gaming, and entertainment is our superhero team of staff writers. They have a keen eye for latest stories, happenings, and even memes for tech enthusiasts.
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