Start here
The free tool below runs entirely in this browser — no account, nothing stored or transmitted. Redact anything you would not want kept before you type it.
Open the companion tool →Why AI makes an old scheme look new
The pitch includes a demo the teenager can produce in minutes, which feels like proof of earning potential. The revenue, if any, comes from the next person who pays to join.
A genuine job pays the worker. Anything that requires an upfront payment, a recruitment of others, or a 'training purchase' is a scheme until proven otherwise.
The protocol
- Write down what the pitch promises: amounts, timeframes, and the exact source.
- Find out what the teenager must pay or buy before earning anything.
- Check whether income depends on recruiting other participants.
- Ask for one verifiable person who was paid, and how.
- Record the answer, then decide together using the household rule: no upfront payments.
What the tool does
Build a teen money-scheme check record It runs locally in this browser and sends nothing.
Limit first: This is a planning aid for a caregiver, not clinical, legal or safety advice. A tool cannot replace a trusted adult, a counsellor or emergency services.
Open the companion tool →Cost and free path
Cost: Free: one complete run in this browser, no account. Optional $4 one-time unlock allows unlimited runs of this tool on this browser. The free path and safety guidance never require payment.
Free path, in order (no cost):
- FTC — ReportFraud.ftc.gov for the scheme and the payment request
- Your bank or payment app's fraud line if money was sent
- 211 for free local youth financial-literacy programmes
What this cannot do: It cannot decide the outcome for you.
Sources checked 2026-10-03 · source bank reviewed against the live pages listed in metadata.
One human next step
If money has been paid, contact the platform and the payment provider immediately, then report to the FTC; if the pitch arrived through school or a peer group, warn the parents involved.
Research log and safety checks
AI-assist path: not used for a verdict. This builder organises the reader's own documents and names an independent source; it does not infer authenticity, eligibility, or legal rights. §6.9/§6.10/§6.11 disclosed in the batch report; §6.12 status line carried in metadata as `status_line`.
§0.5 protection result: category is family-teen-safety; crisis-adjacent: no; fear/urgency/scarcity toolkit used: no. The protective function is free and the paid feature is convenience only.