UtilForge Get the app Free · all tools

UtilForge.org, free cybersecurity and online safety tools and guides. Free checks to use before you pay, share or send. What you type here stays on this phone or computer.

Before you pay.

100% freeNo sign-upsNo trackingKeeps working with the internet off

A quiz, a game, a dating app, a course or a “free” trial asks for your card. Or a text, email or WhatsApp asks you to pay a fee, tap a link or send a code. Check it here first.

The short answer. To check a payment page before you pay, find out who is being paid, how much is charged today and what happens after. This tool asks six short questions about the page, message or offer in front of you, or reads a message you paste in, and says what to look at before a card number goes in. It is built for “free” trials, quizzes, games, dating apps and courses that ask for a card, and for messages that ask you to pay a fee. It runs on your own device.

How it works, in four steps

  1. Paste or chooseChoose what is happening, then answer six questions about the page or message.
  2. The check runs on your own phone or computerWhat you add stays on your device, and the page keeps working with the internet off.
  3. Read what it found and what to do nextSee the warning signs and the steps to take before your card goes in.
  4. What this check cannot doIt cannot confirm that a seller, a payment page or a bank account is genuine, and a result with no warnings is not a guarantee.

What you type here stays on this phone or computer. There is no sign-up, and nothing is saved. Turn the internet off and this page still works.

What this cannot do

This check looks only at what you enter and the signs it knows. It cannot confirm that a seller, a payment page or a bank account is genuine, and a result with no warnings is not a guarantee. Before paying, contact the company yourself using a phone number or website you found independently.

A worked example

This example is made up. A page offers a quiz result for a tiny price.

The page says: “Your intelligence quotient result is ready. Unlock your score for only $1.95 today. By continuing you agree to start your 7-day trial. After the trial your membership renews at $49.95 every month until cancelled.”

The answers: a result or reward is held back until you pay (yes), the price is small (yes), you cannot clearly see what you pay later (not sure), and you have not heard of the company before (no).

The tool says: Stop. Do not pay. It points out that the page itself talks about a trial and a repeating payment, that it shows two prices and the small one is usually only the first payment, that a tiny price to see a quiz result is the most common way these traps start, and that you cannot see what you will pay later.

What to do: close the page. Nothing has been paid, and nothing is lost by walking away. If money has already been taken, use the second half of the tool, which writes the messages to your bank and the company.

Questions people ask

Who made this?

UtilForge makes it. UtilForge is a website of free cybersecurity tools. The About page explains why the tools were made, and the Contact page is the way to reach us.

Is this a scam site?

You do not have to take our word for it, because you can check. This page does not ask for payment, a sign-in or card details. It is set so that your browser stops the page sending anything off your phone or computer, and you can test that: let the page finish loading, switch the internet off, then use it. It keeps working, because it has nowhere to send anything. If you are still unsure about any website, do not type anything private into it. UtilForge also sells optional packs of tools through Gumroad, and nothing on this page needs one.

What happens when I close the page?

What you typed or pasted is gone. It saves nothing in your browser and puts nothing in the web address of the page. The only thing that can stay is text you chose to copy with a Copy button: your phone or computer keeps it on its clipboard, the place that holds copied text, until you copy something else.

Does it cost anything, and do I need to sign in?

It is free, and you can start straight away. UtilForge also sells optional packs of tools through Gumroad, and nothing on this page needs one.

How do I check a message I think might be a scam?

Choose the second button, then paste the text, email, WhatsApp or social media message. The page looks for common signs of a scam and tells you to stop, to be careful, or that it found no common scam signs. No common signs is not proof that a message is safe: if a message asks for money, a code or your details, contact the company yourself using its own app or website.

What should I do if money is being taken that I did not agree to?

Phone your bank on the number on the back of your card or in the bank's own app, never a number from a text or an email. Ask it to stop more payments to the company, dispute the payments already taken and send you a new card. Then tell the company to stop, so there is a written record. The tool writes both messages for you to copy.

Should I ever share a code that is sent to my phone?

No. Never share a code sent to your phone, and never pay with gift cards, vouchers or cryptocurrency because someone asked you to. If you have already paid or shared your card details, phone your bank straight away on the number on the back of your card.

Did this check help you?

Tell UtilForge what worked and what did not. Each button opens an email to lindsay@utilforge.org that you write and send yourself. UtilForge will only quote your words on this site if you say it may, and then with your first name and country only.

Yes, it helpedSomething was missing

The whole method in one book. “How to Become Safer Online” is a free 171-page large-print guide to the five steps most scams follow, and what to do if money or details have already gone. Read or print the free book.