For Helpers

Before helping someone

• Ask permission first
• Explain what you’re doing, as you do it
• Keep the person in control — their hands, their device
• Avoid their private information; look away when they type passwords
• Use official websites, typed in or bookmarked — not links from messages
• Encourage them to try each step themselves
• Go one step at a time, and check understanding as you go
• Stop if the person feels overwhelmed — tomorrow is fine

A good first visit

1. Do the one-minute set-up together (it’s in the footer under “Set-up”) so the app greets them by name.
2. Add the app to their home screen — the guide is on our Technology Help page under “I want this app on my home screen”. This one step doubles the chance they’ll use it without you.
3. Show them one thing only: the Scam Checker if they get worrying texts, or the Guide Finder if they like to ask questions. One confident skill beats five half-remembered ones.
4. Before you leave, let them do it once more from the start, on their own, while you watch and say nothing unless asked.

Worth knowing as a helper

• Everything saved here — notes, routines, check-ins — lives on their device only. A new phone or a cleared browser starts fresh, so anything important deserves a paper copy too.
• The app never asks for passwords, PINs, or bank details — a useful teaching line: “nothing genuine asks for those.”
• It is not an emergency service and doesn’t replace doctors or professional care. The Resources page has the numbers that do.
• A “Trusted Helper” feature is coming — they’ll be able to choose someone to call on when they want support. Their choice, their control; that framing is deliberate.

When they’re frustrated

Phrases that help more than any instruction: “That’s not you — this screen is badly designed.” “There’s no rush at all.” “I had to learn this too.” And the one that restores the most dignity: asking them to teach you something back — a recipe, a repair, a story. Help flows better when it flows both ways.