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A second opinion before Mom pays.

When a call, text or email asks your parent for money, PonchoGuard helps them pause and ask the family first. They still decide.

See plans Check a message free
  • iPhone and Android
  • Landlines and flip phones
  • Windows PCs
  • Chrome and Edge
What a helper sees. Example, made-up data.

Got a message that feels off? Check it free.

Paste a text or email. You get Scam, Suspicious or Looks OK, with one reason and one thing to do next. No account needed.

Copy the whole message, including any link or phone number. Do not click the link first.

Or try an example

Checked right here on this page. Your message is not sent anywhere or saved.

How it works

  1. You set up the family circle

    Sign in with your email, add your parent and up to a few helpers: brothers, sisters, grandkids.

  2. Your parent asks before paying

    A suspicious caller, a roofer who wants cash today, a "grandson" in trouble: one tap, one text or one phone call sends it to the family.

  3. A helper answers in minutes

    Stop, call me, or OK. If nobody answers in 10 minutes, PonchoGuard asks the next helper. Your parent always has the final say.

Helpers hear by email and app notices first, and by text where available. Everyone in the family can see which alerts were sent and to whom, so nothing happens behind anyone's back.

One call, three screens.

One kind of scam, minute by minute: a "roofer" wants a deposit today. This is what each person sees. Example, made-up data.

  1. 2:14 PM

    Mom checks the text

    She pastes it in. PonchoGuard says what looks wrong, and offers to ask her family.

    PonchoGuard on Mom's phone, answer: Suspicious, with a button to ask my family
  2. 2:15 PM

    You get the alert

    You see the amount, who it is for and what looks wrong.

    The helper's screen: Linda asked you to Cosign $6,000 to Storm Pro Roofing, with what PonchoGuard noticed
  3. 2:16 PM

    You answer in one tap

    Stop, call me goes to her. She still decides, and she does not decide alone.

    The helper's answer buttons: Stop, call me, and Approve, with a note that Linda still decides

Two minutes, and nobody sent $6,000.

See plans Check a message free

Whatever phone your parent uses

Smartphone: Ask my family to Cosign

Before your parent pays someone, shares a code or lets someone onto the computer, they tap Ask my family. A helper sees the details and answers Stop, call me or OK.

What it does
  • It never blocks. Your parent always has the final say.
  • Stop is the big button, because a pause is cheap and a wire transfer is not.
  • Dignity Mode: your parent decides what the family sees, and helpers never read everyday messages.

No smartphone? No problem.

For a parent with a landline or a flip phone. They call or text PonchoGuard's toll-free number, and they don't need the app.

What it does
  • Press 1 to check a phone number that called them.
  • Press 2 to reach the family, in order, until someone answers.
  • Press 3 for this week's scam warning, in plain words.
  • Optional daily check-in calls, only after your parent agrees by pressing 1. Pressing 9 stops them.

Computer: PC Guard

Tech-support scams end with a stranger taking over the computer. When a remote-control program like AnyDesk opens, PonchoGuard asks one calm question and can let the family know.

What it does
  • The Chrome and Edge extension pauses fake "your computer is locked, call Microsoft" pages.
  • Family Screen Help: your parent can show the screen to family instead of to a stranger. View-only, and ended with one tap.

Get the apps

Free to download. Sign in with the same email on every device, and a plan bought anywhere works on all of them.

Plans

The adult child usually pays and the parent uses it. A plan bought anywhere works on every device in the family. The message check on this page stays free.

My parent uses

Pay

  • Free

    $0

    Free for good

    What is included
    • 1 parent with the app
    • 1 helper
    • 1 landline or basic phone
    • 10 shared checks a month
    • Ask my family and family alerts
    Start free

  • Landline Guard

    $4.99 a month

    or $49.99 a year

    For a parent with a landline or basic phone. They don't need the app.

    What is included
    • 2 landline or basic phones
    • Text or call PonchoGuard to check a message
    • Call my family: press 2 to reach the family (60 minutes a month)
    • Daily check-in and weekly scam warning calls for both phones (optional)
    • Alerts for up to 3 helpers
    • "Who called me?" lookup

    Manage your parent's landline from your phone. Does not include the PonchoGuard app for your parent, shared app checks, Ask my family, PC Guard or Screen Help.

    Choose Landline Guard

  • Family

    $6.99 a month

    or $69.99 a year

    What is included
    • 2 parents with the app
    • 5 helpers
    • 3 landline or basic phones
    • Unlimited shared checks, Ask my family and family alerts
    • Call my family 30 minutes a month
    • Daily check-in calls as an add-on
    Choose Family

  • Family + PC Guard

    $9.99 a month

    or $99.99 a year

    What is included
    • 4 parents with the app
    • 8 helpers
    • 4 landline or basic phones
    • Windows PC Guard on 3 PCs
    • Family Screen Help included
    • Call my family 60 minutes a month
    • Daily check-in calls for 1 phone included
    Choose Family + PC Guard
Add-ons, Founding Family and billing

Daily check-in calls: +$2.99 a month per phone ($29.99 a year) on Family; Family + PC Guard includes 1 phone. Included on Landline Guard.

Founding Family: $49.99 for the first year of Family, for the first 500 families, on the web only. After the first year it renews at $69.99 a year.

Choosing a plan opens the family dashboard: sign in with your email, then pay securely with Stripe. Cancel any time: on the web in Manage billing, or in your Apple or Google Play subscription settings. How to cancel.

Your privacy, in plain words

The three promises

  • Checking here

    The check runs on this page, then on PonchoGuard's check service. The message is not saved.

  • In your family

    Message text is deleted after 30 days; only the verdict stays. Only your family can see your checks and alerts.

  • Always

    No ads, no data brokers. We never sell your information. Read the privacy policy.

Questions families ask

What can I use right now?

The message check on this page, free and without signing up. Sign in at the family dashboard to set up your family, Ask my family, alerts and the toll-free line. The iPhone, Android and Windows apps and the Chrome and Edge extension are in their stores (see Get the apps).

Does my parent need to install an app?

No. PonchoGuard works in the phone's web browser and can be added to the home screen like an app. A parent with a landline or flip phone uses the toll-free number instead. The Windows PC Guard and the browser extension are optional extras.

What does the family see?

Only what your parent agrees to. By default, helpers hear about high-risk moments, such as a request to pay with gift cards, and never see the text of everyday messages.

Is "Looks OK" a promise?

No. PonchoGuard is careful, not perfect, and never makes that promise. It looks for the warning signs scammers rely on and tells you what it noticed. When money or access to a computer is involved, pause and ask someone.

How do notifications work?

Helpers choose email, app notices or, where available, text messages. Quiet hours are respected, except for urgent moments such as someone taking over your parent's computer.

My parent only has a landline or a flip phone. Can PonchoGuard help?

Yes, with Landline Guard. Your parent texts a suspicious message or number to PonchoGuard's toll-free number, or calls it and presses 1 to check a number, 2 to reach the family or 3 for this week's scam warning. You can also turn on a daily check-in call and a weekly scam warning call. Both are off until you turn them on, and your parent agrees first by pressing 1. Pressing 9 stops them. The Family plans include the toll-free number and Call my family too. On Family, daily check-in calls are an add-on for each phone; Family + PC Guard includes them for 1 phone.

Landline Guard is $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year. Founding Family is for the Family plan only.

How do I buy a plan?

Choose a plan above, or sign in to the family dashboard with your email and open Plan. You pay securely with Stripe, and the plan works in the apps too. You can also buy in the PonchoGuard app on iPhone or Android.

Founding Family ($49.99 for the first year of Family) is for the first 500 families, on the web only.

Got a message you are not sure about?

Check a message free

Cover for the people who covered you.

Set up your family in a few minutes, or leave your email and we'll send news about new features. No spam, and we never sell your information.

See plans

$49.99 for the first year of Family (then $69.99 a year), for the first 500 families. Ticking this only tells us you're interested; nothing is charged.