How it works
From setup to release.
Your digital life is locked behind credentials only you know. DeadSwitch makes sure the people you named can get in — only if you stop checking in.
Create your vault
Plug the DeadSwitch USB into any computer. The app runs from the drive with zero installation. Create a strong master password and choose your security mode — Key Split, which we recommend, or Cloud Stored.
Nothing gets installed on the host computer
Add your items
Eight categories: passwords, financial accounts, crypto wallets, documents, insurance, medical, legal, and personal messages. Record video or audio for a specific person if you want to. Import from 1Password, Bitwarden, LastPass, or KeePass.
Set up beneficiaries
Assign specific items to specific people. Each person gets a printable emergency card with a unique secret. Hand the card over in person, or say where it is.
Configure the switch
7, 14, or 30 days. Email always; drive owners, Cloud Plus and Cloud Max can also text. Click the link or reply ALIVE. Miss it, and the system escalates before anything is released.
- Day 14Check-in dueAn email. Drive owners, Cloud Plus and Cloud Max can also text. One click resets the clock.
- Day 17ReminderStill no answer? A reminder on every channel you have set up.
- Day 28Grace periodA fixed 72-hour window, with a final notice 24 hours before it ends.
- Day 31ReleaseEach person receives their code and instructions. Irreversible from here.
Shown for a 14-day interval. On 7 days the whole sequence takes about 17 days; on 30 days, about 63. Grace is always 72 hours. Any check-in before release cancels it.
When it fires
Each person you named gets an email in plain words: what has happened, what they now have access to, and exactly what to do next — written for someone who has never done any of this before.
A key that is theirs alone
Plus the card secret, if you chose Key Split. Neither half works alone.
Step-by-step instructions, no jargon
Unlock as Beneficiary. Not your master password.
Only the parts you assigned
Read-only. Other people may have been given different items.
Your own words, if you left any
Video and audio play in the app. There is no rush on the drive.
Where it sits
| Feature | DeadSwitch | Password managers | Google Inactive Account Manager | Paper list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Automated detection (dead man’s switch) | Yes | No | Partial | No |
| Per-person access control | Yes | Partial | Partial | No |
| Offline, on a drive you own | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| End-to-end encrypted | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Video and audio messages | Yes | No | No | No |
| One-time payment | Yes | Partial | Partial | Partial |
Comparison reflects publicly documented category behaviour as of September 2026, not every SKU. DeadSwitch: USB Vault and Family Bundle are one-time purchases; Cloud Vault is optional and monthly. Per-person assignment is included on USB, Family, Cloud Plus, and Cloud Max — not Cloud Basic. Offline storage applies to the USB. Password managers are built for daily use; some offer request-based emergency access, not an inactivity switch. Google Inactive Account Manager can share some Google-account data after inactivity; it is not a vault. Paper is offline and free; no detection, no encryption, goes stale. DeadSwitch is not a replacement for a password manager or a will.