Handrail: Simple Home Screen

Handrail turns an Android phone into a calm, simple phone for an older parent.

• Big photos of the people they call: one tap calls, a long press sends a message
• A few apps as large word buttons, with no swiping and no clutter
• A Help button that calls family one after another until someone answers
• New messages from family in big letters on the home screen, with an answer by speaking
• Reminders from the family, once or every day (like morning pills), that ring on time
• A calm look, or high contrast for weak eyesight
• Large text (at least 20 sp) and big buttons, in English, German, Italian or Spanish

Set up by family
A son or daughter sets up the home screen with the Handrail family app and can change it later from their own phone. Every change is shown on the screen with their name. Nothing changes silently, and the parent can see who helps in the settings.

Scam guard
Before a banking app opens during or after a call with a stranger, after a link from an unknown sender, or after a message from a "new number" claiming to be family, Handrail pauses and suggests calling family first. It also warns:
• when a code arrives that nobody asked for, including WhatsApp codes
• when an app from outside the Play Store looks like a bank or security app, or is installed during a call with a stranger
• about link messages, and says what the trick is: a fake fine, parcel fee or refund
• after a long call: nobody from the police or a bank collects cash, gold or cards at the door
During a long call with a stranger, the family is told while the call is still on and can ask the phone to show "Hang up now". The parent always decides.

Or keep their own home screen
Not ready for a new home screen? Choose "Scam guard only": the phone keeps its usual home screen, and Handrail runs the same scam guard, family alerts and Help in the background, with a Help button for the home screen. A notice shows whenever Handrail is on.

Or protect your own phone
No family to set it up? Choose "Protect my own phone": pick one or two trusted people from your contacts, and the scam guard warns you and suggests calling them first. It is free, and nothing leaves your phone. Later you can invite a trusted person to get your alerts with the family app.

How it works and what it uses
• Call screening role: to learn who is calling. Handrail never blocks or silences calls.
• Phone state: to notice when a call starts and ends.
• Contacts: to tell known callers from strangers. Contacts never leave the phone.
• Notification access: to notice links, codes and "new number" messages in text messages and WhatsApp, and to show messages from people they know in big letters. Message text never leaves the phone.
• New apps: Handrail checks where each new app came from. No extra permission.
• Battery exemption: so alerts reach the family while the screen is off.
• Usage access (scam guard only): to see which app just opened, only for a limited time after a risky call or message.
• Display over other apps (scam guard only): to show the warning on top of a banking app.
• Notifications (scam guard only): the "Handrail is on" notice with Help, and scam warnings.

The family app is needed to set up a parent's phone, not to protect your own. Data is stored in the EU. The parent's phone keeps working without a paid plan.