Product Design Lead & Researcher
iOS + Android Mobile App
Platform.
$5,000 CAD — Velocity Pitch Competition + CABHI Grant
Awards
A Public Health Crisis
Older adults are disproportionately targeted because they are often less familiar with the rapidly evolving landscape of phone scams: impersonation calls, emergency scams, romance fraud, and investment schemes. When scams do happen, there are no tools that intervene in real time. Reporting is fragmented, complicated, and emotionally overwhelming for victims who are often ashamed to come forward.
My objective was to design a mobile app that could intervene during an active scam call — in real time — before the damage was done.
The solution needed to work for older adults with lower digital literacy, respect privacy, support multilingual users, and integrate seamlessly into the existing call experience on iOS and Android.
WHAT I BUILT
HALO is an AI-driven call guardian. When an unknown number calls, HALO transcribes the conversation in real time using an LLM trained on known phone scam language, patterns, and scenarios. If suspicious language is detected — threats, urgency, impersonation, or requests for money — the app intervenes instantly with a clear on-screen alert.
User Flow Architecture
Design System
MVP KEY FEATURES BUILT
RECOGNIZE
Real-time transcription and AI analysis of unknown calls. The model detects common scam signals including urgency cues, impersonation patterns, and financial pressure language
REACT
Instant alert to the user and simultaneous notification to a pre-set trusted contact. The user is given safe options: hang up, call a trusted contact, or reroute to a verified number.
REVIEW
Post-call summary and transcription available for unknown numbers only. Verified contacts maintain full privacy — HALO never records welcomed calls.
REPORT
One-tap reporting directly to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre and local police, including the call transcript as evidence. This dramatically lowers the barrier to reporting.
THE OUTCOME
HALO was awarded $5,000 at the Velocity Pitch Competition and received a grant from the Centre for Aging and Brain Health Innovation (CABHI), validating both the technical approach and the market need. Mentor feedback from cybersecurity professionals and the pitch judges confirmed that HALO is the only solution in the Canadian market combining real-time call interception, trusted contact notification, and one-tap fraud reporting in a single interface.
Key areas for further development identified through mentor sessions include: customer acquisition strategy targeting family members as the primary install driver, deeper integration with telecoms for spoofed number flagging, and a scalable B2B partnership model with banks and insurance companies.
