kill switches
Instant shutdown controls
Kill switches are mechanisms designed to shut something down quickly, usually as a safety measure or failsafe.
The term originated with physical devices—emergency cutoffs on machinery or vehicles—but now commonly refers to software features that can remotely disable a program, device, or system: The company activated the kill switch when the software was pirated.
Kill switches appear in discussions of AI safety, stolen phones, and runaway processes.
- power offCease electrical operation
- shutdownCessation of operations
- pull the plugDiscontinue or terminate something
- disconnectTo break a connection
- cut the cordEnd a dependent connection
deactivate · fail-safe · breaker · cutoffs · cybersecurity · disable · big red button · panic button · emergency stop · deadman · dead man's hand · safety · isolation · emergency · buttons · override · interruption · tripwire
- safety equipmentlife jacket, safety glasses, lifeboat, smoke alarms, smoke alarm
- Synthetic Biologysynthetic biology, DNA synthesis, standardized parts, bioengineering, xenobiology
- cyber borderssplinternet, balkanization, walled gardens, geo-blocking, content filtering
- electrical safetyelectric shock, circuit breaker, fuse, GFCI, ground wire
- engine partspiston, valve, cylinder, crankshaft, camshaft