Deducktive Early access

A Mac app, still being built

Spots scams as they happen. Remembers what you saw.

For you, or for a parent you look out for. Deducktive warns in plain, calm words when something on the screen is a scam. It finds what you saw when you ask. Nothing about your screen leaves the Mac.

See what it does Early access

Not released yet. It will need a Mac with Apple silicon and macOS 26 or later.

The Deducktive app icon: a soft clay duck in a navy detective hat and coat. Stays on this Mac No pictures saved No passwords kept

Three promises: local, private, kind

Local.

The reading, the checking and the answering all happen on your Mac.

There is no account and no cloud. Nothing about your screen is sent anywhere.

Private.

Deducktive saves words, never pictures. Passwords, card numbers and codes are hidden before anything is saved.

What it remembers is locked. It opens only with Touch ID or your Mac password.

Kind.

Warnings say what the scammer is doing, what to do next, and what is still fine.

Nobody is blamed. Every warning can be overridden, because you are in charge.

What it does

One quiet reader. Two jobs.

Deducktive reads the same words you do, and uses them twice: once to watch for scams, and once to help you find things later.

It warns you

A calm stop when something is a scam

One card says what to do, why, and what is still fine. Then you choose.

It answers you

An answer that shows where and when

Ask in your own words. The answer comes with the app, the place and the date.

How it works, in four steps

  1. It reads the words on your screen

    Words, not pictures. Deducktive notes which app or website they were in, and the time.

  2. It checks them on your Mac

    Simple checks run first. A closer look happens only when something seems wrong. Nothing is sent away to be checked.

  3. It warns you calmly

    In plain words it says what is wrong, what to do next, and what is still fine. Then you choose.

  4. It remembers, so you can ask later

    The same words are saved as text. Ask a question and the answer shows where and when you saw it.

A little more exactly. Most apps already share their text with macOS for accessibility, and Deducktive reads that. When an app does not, Deducktive looks at that window for a moment to read the words, then discards the picture. No picture is ever saved. Text you have already seen is not saved twice.

Scam protection

It notices the scam while it is on the screen.

Not after the money has moved. Deducktive reads along wherever the words appear: in your browser, in Mail, in Messages, or when an app is being installed.

The clay duck holds up a hand in front of a pop-up window that shows a red warning sign.

What it looks for

  • Fake tech support pop-ups
  • Emails pretending to be your bank
  • Fake bills and renewals
  • Gift card demands
  • Bitcoin or crypto demands
  • Strangers asking to control your Mac
  • Fake home rentals
  • Fake job offers
  • Fake delivery or toll notices
  • Someone pretending to be family
  • Investments that are too good to be true
  • Someone pretending to be the government

Two kinds of warning, and no more

When it might be a scam: a gentle note

A small note appears near the duck in the menu bar. It does not interrupt what you are doing. You can close the page, or say "It's fine".

When it is a scam: a calm full-screen stop

The scam page is dimmed so it cannot be clicked. One card says what to do. You can call your helper, close the page, or say "I'm sure it's fine".

No countdowns. No red screens. No scores. Closing a page deletes nothing, and you can always carry on if you choose to.

Three warnings, word for word

A full-screen warning always has three parts: what to do, why, and what is still fine. A gentle note is shorter.

Fake tech support pop-up Full screen

Stop. This is a scam.

Don't call this number. Real Apple support never shows a phone number in a pop-up.

Your Mac is fine. Close this page and nothing bad will happen.

Fake bill or renewal Gentle note

This might be a scam

This bill is for something you may not have bought. The phone number in it is not the real company's.

Real companies charge the card you gave them and email a receipt.

Gift card demand Full screen

Stop. Don't buy gift cards.

Don't share any gift card numbers. Only scammers ask to be paid this way.

No real bill or fine is paid with gift cards. You can stop now.

A rental scam, in four lines

Some scams arrive in pieces. Each piece looks ordinary. Deducktive is built to keep track of the pieces.

  1. A listing shows a house for much less than the homes nearby. Unusual, but not proof.
  2. A short form asks you to "prequalify" before any tour. Still ordinary.
  3. Three hours later, an email from a free address asks for your ID, pay stubs and bank statements, then a deposit, all before a viewing. The owner is "away".
  4. Deducktive joins the three together and says so, in plain words.

Ask

Ask about anything you saw on your Mac.

A number, a name, an email, a page. Deducktive answers from what was on your screen, and always shows where and when.

The clay duck holds a magnifying glass over three small cards: a phone number, a calendar and a note.

What was the plumber's phone number?

AnswerFrom your memory on this Mac

(415) 555-0142

The phone number for Rivera Plumbing & Drain.

Seen in Safari on yelp.com

Tuesday, November 3 at 3:14 PM · one week ago

Page: Rivera Plumbing & Drain, San Jose

Licensed and insured since 1998. Call for a free estimate: (415) 555-0142. Open Monday to Saturday, 8 am to 6 pm.

What did my bank's email say?

AnswerFrom your memory on this Mac

Your statement is ready

An email from First Harbor Bank about your October statement.

Seen in Mail, from First Harbor Bank

Yesterday at 9:02 AM

Subject: Your statement is ready

Your statement is ready for the account ending [account number hidden]. Sign in from the First Harbor app to read it.

Where is Thursday's appointment?

AnswerFrom your memory on this Mac

1200 Alder Street, Suite 4

The address for your visit to Lakeside Eye Care.

Seen in Messages

Friday, November 6 at 10:05 AM · 4 days ago

Conversation with Dana

Your eye appointment is Thursday at 2:30. It's at 1200 Alder Street, Suite 4. I can drive you.
  • No source, no answer. The answer must appear word for word in what you saw. If Deducktive is unsure it says "This might be it".
  • Honest when it can't. "Couldn't find that." comes with the likely reason, such as a private window or a pause.
  • Forget is one click. Forget one thing, a whole website, the last hour, today, or everything.

Who it is for

For the person at the Mac, and the person who helps them.

If you are setting this up for a parent, here is exactly what you will and will not see. It is the same thing your parent is told.

For the person at the Mac: two ways to look

You choose during setup and can change it any time. Warnings look the same in both. So does everything about privacy.

Simple

Bigger words. Fewer buttons. Made for older adults, and for anyone who wants less on screen. It is the starting choice.

Everyday

More on screen. More controls. For people who are comfortable with their Mac and want filters and a keyboard shortcut.

For the helper: a short note, never the screen

A helper is a family member or friend the person chooses. Adding one is optional.

What a helper gets

What Maya will get

From Margaret's Mac (Deducktive): A likely fake tech support pop-up was stopped at 2:41 PM. Margaret closed it. Nothing else is needed, but a quick call would be kind.

The note is sent from Margaret's own Messages or Mail. The wording is fixed.

  • A note when a serious scam is stopped.
  • A note if the person chooses to continue anyway. They are told before they choose.
  • A phone call, if the person presses "Call Maya" on a warning.
  • Every note is kept, word for word, where the person can read it.

What a helper never gets

  • The screen. There is no remote view, no web dashboard and no companion app.
  • The memory. A helper cannot read it or search it. It opens only at that Mac.
  • The words. No text from the page, the email or the message. No numbers from it.
  • The name of the app or website, unless the person turns that on.
  • Control. A helper cannot change settings, end a pause, or turn anything on.
  • Notes about small things. Gentle "might be" notes are never sent to a helper.

Privacy, precisely

Exactly what it reads, saves, hides and sends.

An app that reads your screen owes you plain answers. Here they are. If any line is unclear, the mistake is on this page.

The clay duck sits with an arm around a small laptop that shows a closed padlock.
What Deducktive reads, saves, leaves out, hides and sends
What it reads

The words showing on your screen, the name of the app, the window or page title, the website address, and the time.

It reads what is displayed. It does not record your keystrokes. It does not record sound.
What it saves

Text only: the words, where they were, and when. No screenshots, no thumbnails, no video, no audio.

It is kept for 1 year unless you choose 1 month, 3 months, or "until I forget it".
Where it is kept, and how it is locked

On this Mac only. The saved text is encrypted with a key that this Mac holds and that never leaves it. A copied disk or a backup cannot be read.

Opening it needs Touch ID, an Apple Watch or your Mac login password. There is no separate Deducktive password to forget. It locks again when the Mac sleeps or locks, after a few minutes without use, and whenever the screen is being shared.
What it never reads
  • Password boxes
  • Private browsing windows
  • Password apps, and the Passwords settings
  • Windows that ask not to be captured
  • Shared or remote-controlled screens
  • Any app or website you leave out
What it never remembers

Bank, investment, tax, payroll and patient websites, and payment pages. Scam protection may check the words on such a page while it is in front of you. Nothing from it is saved.

An email from your bank is remembered, with the numbers hidden, so that you can ask what it said.
What it hides before saving
  • Card numbers and security codes
  • Social Security and other ID numbers
  • One-time codes
  • Passwords shown on screen
  • Bank account and routing numbers
  • Recovery keys and seed phrases

The saved text reads, for example, "Card ending [card number hidden]".
What leaves your Mac

By default, nothing. No account. No sync. No cloud service reads your screen or answers your questions.

  • Helper notes, if you add a helper. A short fixed note, sent from your own Messages or Mail. It never contains what was on the screen.
  • Things you ask for. "Open page" opens that page in your browser. "Call" starts a call.
  • Lookups that use the internet. Off by default. Any such lookup is named in Settings and sends only the smallest piece it needs, never the words on your screen.
Which AI models run

All of the AI runs on your Mac. Where it is available and turned on, Deducktive uses Apple's on-device model, the one built into macOS. Otherwise it uses a smaller open model that also runs on your Mac.

Simple rules run before either model, and scam protection keeps working on rules alone if no model is available. No cloud model is ever called.
Permissions it asks for, and why
  • Screen Recording (macOS calls it "Screen & System Audio Recording"). This lets Deducktive read the words on your screen. It never saves pictures or sound.
  • Accessibility. This tells Deducktive which app and page the words came from. It also lets it close a scam page when you ask.
  • Notifications (optional). This lets Deducktive show a gentle note when something looks wrong.

Nothing is read until you have finished setup and pressed "Start Deducktive".
What you control

Pause in one click. Forget one thing, a website, an app, the last hour, today, or everything. Leave out any app or website. Quit whenever you like. "Erase everything and quit" removes the memory, the settings and the key.

Honest limits

  • It can miss a scam. It can also warn about something that is fine. Treat it as a second opinion, not a guarantee.
  • It only sees this Mac's screen. It cannot hear a phone call, and it cannot see your phone.
  • It cannot help while it is paused, or in windows it never reads, such as private windows.
  • Anyone who knows your Mac login password can open the memory at your Mac, just as they can open your Mail.
  • It is early software and still being built. Some of what is described here may change before release.
  • No accuracy or speed measurements have been published yet, so this page makes no claims about either.

In plain sight

Used with the person's knowledge, or not at all.

Deducktive is for protecting someone who wants it. These four things are built in and cannot be switched off.

The clay duck rests a hand on a large pause button.

  • They are asked, by name

    If you set it up for someone, setup stops and asks them: "Margaret, is this OK with you?" It cannot go on until they answer at the Mac.

  • A duck you can always see

    The duck sits in the menu bar whenever Deducktive can read the screen. If the duck is hidden, reading stops.

  • Pause in one click

    Click the duck and choose 15 minutes, 1 hour, or until tomorrow. While paused, nothing is read.

  • No hidden mode

    There is no stealth setting. Once a week it asks, "Is that still OK?" It quits and goes in the Trash like any app.

Deducktive is not for watching another adult. If that is the goal, this is the wrong app. It is designed to make that hard.

Early access

Deducktive is still being built.

There is nothing to download yet, and nothing to sign up for. This page has no form and collects nothing about you. When early access opens, this is where it will say so.

  • In development
  • Nothing to download yet
  • No form, no sign-up
  • For Macs with Apple silicon, macOS 26 or later

Questions

Fair questions, plain answers.

Is this spyware?

No. Spyware hides, and it reports to someone else. Deducktive does neither.

The duck is in the menu bar whenever it can read the screen, and no setting hides it. There is no remote view. What it remembers opens only at that Mac, with Touch ID or the Mac password. Once a week it asks whether remembering is still OK.

Can my family read my screen?

No. A helper gets a short note when a serious scam is stopped, or when you choose to carry on past a warning. The note names the kind of scam and the time. It never contains what was on your screen.

A helper cannot search your memory or change your settings. You can read every note that was sent.

Does it slow my Mac down?

It is designed to stay light. It reads when something on the screen changes, saves text instead of pictures or video, and uses the larger model only when something looks wrong or when you ask a question.

No measurements have been published yet, so there are no numbers here.

What does it cost?

Not decided yet. There is nothing to buy today, and no account to create.

Does it need the internet?

Not to do its job. Scam protection and Ask run on the Mac, so they work without a connection. Sending a helper note needs Messages or Mail, which use the internet as usual.

What if it gets something wrong?

It sometimes will. Every warning has a way past it, in your own words: "It's fine" or "I'm sure it's fine". Nothing is deleted or blocked without your say.

Later you can mark "That was not a scam", and Deducktive will not warn about that page again.

Which Macs does it work on?

A Mac with Apple silicon, running macOS 26 or later. It does not run on Intel Macs. Deducktive is a Mac app. There is no iPhone, iPad or Windows version.

How do I remove it?

Like any Mac app. Choose "Erase everything and quit" to remove the memory, the settings and the key. Then drag Deducktive to the Trash.

The clay duck waves.

Sharp eyes. Calm waters.

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