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○ How it works

How a protected call works

Scout sits between you and the caller on calls routed through its own calling service. Here's every step, including what Scout will never do.

Before the first call: setup

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    Choose your coverage

    Forward your regular number to your Scout number with your carrier, so people keep calling the number they know. Or use a dedicated Scout number; then only calls to that number are protected.

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    Consent and language

    Review the call-analysis disclosures in English or Spanish and agree to them. Installing the app alone doesn't turn protection on.

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    Pick your credit union and helper

    Sound Credit Union in the pilot. Adding a trusted helper is optional.

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    Place a test call

    Home always shows whether protection is set up, your last successful test, and “Monitoring unavailable” whenever Scout can't protect a call.

During the call

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    A normal call

    Calls from unknown numbers pass through Scout. Every caller hears a short recorded notice that the call is protected and analyzed, as Washington's all-party consent law requires (RCW 9.73.030). Nothing else is asked of them.

    • Your iPhone rings like a normal call, with the caller's real number, even when it's locked. The keypad works, so phone menus work too.
    • Scout stays in the background and says nothing unless it has something to tell you.
    • Caller ID and a convincing introduction are never treated as proof of identity.

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    Live analysis

    While you talk, Scout transcribes both sides and looks for the tactics scammers depend on, judged in context.

    The 7 tactics Scout listens for

    • “Safe account” transfers

      Being told to move money somewhere to protect it.

    • Codes and passwords

      Requests for PINs, passwords, or one-time codes, or for bank details to “receive” a surprise refund or prize.

    • Remote access

      Pressure to install software that lets someone control your device.

    • Gift cards or crypto

      Being asked to pay with gift cards or cryptocurrency.

    • Secrecy

      Being told to keep the call secret from family or your bank.

    • Misleading others

      Being coached to mislead a bank employee or family member.

    • Urgent threats

      Urgency backed by threats: arrest, a locked account, a relative in trouble.

    A keyword alone never counts as fraud. Scout looks at what is being asked, by whom, and why.

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    Private spoken warnings

    When strong signs appear, Scout plays a short spoken warning that only you hear. The caller hears nothing. The same explanation appears on your screen.

    • Then you decide: Reconnect safely, End call, or Continue call.
    • Scout never ends a call on its own because of an AI assessment.
    • Scout doesn't repeat the same warning over and over.

    ○ Example warning

    “The caller asked you to move money to protect it. This matches a common bank-impersonation scam.”

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    Safe Reconnect

    Tap Reconnect safely and Scout fully disconnects the caller, who can't stay on the line or hear anything after that. Then Scout starts a separate call to the destination you choose.

    • Destinations come only from Scout's directory (Sound Credit Union's verified number) or contacts you saved during setup, never from the caller, a message, or an AI answer.
    • With your permission, a short incident brief goes to the employee who answers.
    • If nobody is available, Scout offers your helper or a clear follow-up route. Immediate help can't be guaranteed.

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    Recovery

    If you tap “I already paid or shared information,” Scout starts a checklist for your situation, adapted from FTC and IdentityTheft.gov guidance.

    SituationScout helps you
    Money sentContact the sending institution quickly and keep the transaction details.
    Card details sharedReach your card issuer's real security line.
    Password or code sharedGo to that service's official security process.
    Remote access grantedGet help securing your device.

    Each task is marked Not started, In progress, or Completed. Scout never claims it cancelled a payment, froze a card, filed a dispute, or recovered money. It has no connection to banking systems that could do those things.

AI-voice detection, with honest limits

Scout's voice check looks only at the caller's audio, never at Scout's own speech. It needs no samples of anyone's voice and no idea what they'll say. It judges how the audio was produced, separately from what the caller asks for.

Every check ends in exactly one of three results

  • ● Result 1/3

    Possible synthetic speech detected

    Signs of AI-generated audio. Scout warns you: verify independently before sending money or sharing information.

  • ○ Result 2/3

    No synthetic indicators detected

    Nothing found, and the caller's identity is still unverified. This is never a “verified human” label.

  • ○ Result 3/3

    Unable to assess reliably

    Too little audio, poor quality, or the detector isn't available. Scout says so instead of guessing.

  • Scout never identifies a person by their voice.
  • AI speech isn't automatically fraud: accessibility tools and translators use it, so Scout never blocks a call for that alone.
  • If a voice that sounds like a relative asks for emergency money, Scout offers to end the call and call that relative back on the number you saved.

In the pilot

The neural vocoder artifact screener checks a few short slices of each call. Scout never relies on the voice alone: the conversation analysis keeps watching what the caller asks you to do, and a computer voice that asks for nothing risky (like a company's phone menu) isn't flagged as a scam.

Calls you make

Outgoing calls are protected too when you place them through Scout's dialer. App calling needs an internet connection. If your iPhone can't receive app calls, Scout can ring your regular phone line instead and you use the keypad: press star for options.