Press kit

SecondLook

Available now on the App Store · iOS 18

The pitch

SecondLook checks a job message or screenshot for scam patterns — entirely on your iPhone, with named reasons instead of a black-box score.

Boilerplate — one line

SecondLook is an on-device iPhone utility that checks job messages against known scam patterns and explains, in plain language, what's unusual for your hiring stage — no account, no tracking.

Boilerplate — standard

SecondLook is a privacy-first iPhone app for job seekers. Paste a recruiter message or import a screenshot, pick where you are in the hiring process, and SecondLook runs a rule check on your device and reports which job-scam patterns matched — each with a reason and a next step. It compares links to real employers' careers sites, weighs the same request differently at first contact than at onboarding, and strips SSNs and card numbers from anything it shows you. The standard check makes no network requests. An optional Deep AI Check, gated behind a one-time consent, is the only feature that sends your message anywhere. Free, with an optional subscription; no account, ever.

At a glance

Platform: iPhone, iOS 18. Share Extension, Control Center control, Home Screen widget.
Price: Free. Optional SecondLook Plus: $3.99/month or $24.99/year, 7-day free trial.
Availability: Available now on the App Store.
Account: None. No sign-in, no email, ever.
Data collected: None in the default flow. "Other User Content" only when a user runs Deep AI Check — not linked to identity, not used for tracking.
Category: Utilities (primary), Business (secondary). Age 4+.
Made by: AvaResearch LLC (independent).
Website: avaj845.github.io/SecondLook
Press contact: AvaResearchLLC@gmail.com

What it does

The check

On-device rule check. ~18 stage-aware patterns behind fake job offers, each with a plain reason and a next step. Not a score.
Company reality check. When a message name-drops a well-known employer, its links are compared to that employer's real careers site — from a bundled, offline list.
Offline link check. Domains compared on device to real applicant-tracking and careers hosts, and checked for lookalikes.
Stage awareness. An SSN request is routine at onboarding and alarming at first contact — SecondLook reads the same ask differently at each stage.
On-device screenshot reading for messages sent as images.
Redaction everywhere. SSNs, card, and bank numbers are removed before anything is shown back or shared.
Practice mode + a pattern glossary to build the user's own eye between checks.
"Send a safe copy" to forward a suspicious message with personal numbers stripped, and a one-tap FTC report handoff on strong flags.
Optional Deep AI Check — the one feature that sends the message off-device, only on an explicit tap after a one-time consent.

The position

The gap it owns

Job-scam scanners exist, but the ones that run the analysis on a server can't make a real privacy claim — the analysis is the server call. And most hand back a risk number with nothing to check it against.

SecondLook is the job-message-specific tool that is explainable, stage-aware, genuinely on-device, and account-free at once. It's built to be calm rather than alarming, and to teach the patterns rather than just score them.

The claim

What SecondLook can say that a server-based scanner can't

The standard check — rules, link check, employer check, screenshot text — runs entirely on the device.
A user's message and screenshots never leave the phone for a standard check. The most that reaches a server is which patterns matched, to help word the summary.
No analytics SDK, no advertising SDK, no account.
Users get named rules with reasons, not a risk number.
Message content is only sent if the user chooses Deep AI Check — and SSNs and card or bank numbers are removed first.

Why we built it

"The advice for a suspicious job message has always been 'trust your gut.' But scammers now copy real hiring language word for word, and you're reading it at 11pm hoping it's real. We wanted a second opinion that explains itself, treats the same request differently depending on where you are, and never asks you to hand your message — or your identity — to a stranger to get it."
— Founder, AvaResearch LLC

Screenshots

The app

The Check screen with a suspicious recruiter message pasted in — a remote coordinator role asking for ID and a deposited check — Paste a message or import a screenshot.

The report: a red banner reading Several things don't line up, severity tallies, a Checked on your device note, and a plain-language summary — An overall read, an on-device note, every flag with a reason.

Spot the scam practice mode: message one of six, an onboarding message telling you to deposit a check and wire money back, with Looks legit and Something's off buttons — Practice mode — train your own eye.

Brand

Assets

The app icon is "Second glance" — a message bubble echoed by a ghost of itself, on the navy→teal brand field. Do not recolor, add effects, or place it on a busy background.

#172033 navy #39B7A5 teal #F28B7A coral (accent) #DDF5EF mint #F7F8FA canvas

Type: Spectral (display), Public Sans (body), IBM Plex Mono (labels). The app itself uses the system font.

Links

Website — avaj845.github.io/SecondLook
Privacy Policy — /privacy.html
Terms — /terms.html
Source — github.com/AvaJ845/SecondLook
Report a job scam (U.S.) — reportfraud.ftc.gov