Cyber Dive·Product Design Lead·2022–2024
Turning Digital Policing Into Partnership
Cyber Dive’s Real-Time App Approvals Cut Family Tech Conflicts by 63%
63%
fewer family tech conflicts
+41%
parent task completion
+64%
usability SUS score
93%
parents use at least one tool
Problem
73% of children receive smartphones by age 12. Most parental control tools rely on rigid block-or-allow rules, which feel like surveillance and push kids toward workarounds. Families were fighting over apps, not talking about them.
Constraints
Trust
Kids needed agency. Any solution that felt like monitoring would be rejected.
Context
Parents needed more than an app name to decide. They needed ratings, reasons, and signals.
Timing
Decisions had to happen in seconds, not after kids had already been exposed to harm.
Key Insight
Parents and kids both wanted the same thing: to feel heard. The app wasn't a control tool. It was a conversation tool. Every interaction needed to strengthen trust, not erode it.
Solution
Designed a transparent approval flow where kids write their reasoning, parents see app details, privacy labels, and community approvals, then respond with approve, reject with reason, or a trial period. A negotiation, not a verdict.
My Role
- Product Design Lead
- Led UX research, flows, visual design, and user testing
- 20 participants tested across UserTesting and Maze platforms
- 4-month timeline, launched June 2024
Duration
4 Months, Launched June 2024
Team Collaboration
UX Research, Product Manager, Android Dev, AOSP Engineer, Founder
Impact
63%
fewer family tech conflicts
+41%
parent task completion
+64%
usability SUS score
93%
parents use at least one tool
The choices that shaped the product
Key Decisions
Decision 01
Give kids a voice in the request
The easy path was a one-tap "request" button. But research showed kids felt unheard when denied without reason. We added a required reasoning field so kids write why they want an app. This turned every request into a moment of communication. Parents reported feeling closer to their kids after approval conversations, not distant.
Decision 02
Show parents what other parents chose
Most parents aren't tech-savvy. Asking them to evaluate an app based on name and age rating alone felt unfair. We added community signals showing how many parents approved the same app. This gave non-technical parents confidence to make informed decisions without becoming privacy researchers.
Decision 03
Rejection with reason, not rejection alone
A silent "no" felt like surveillance. We made rejection require a parent to pick a reason from pre-written options or write their own. Kids saw the reasoning, understood the "why," and came back with better requests instead of resentment. Conflict dropped by 63% in testing.
Context
73% of children receive smartphones by age 12, entering digital worlds before families are ready.
Traditional parental control tools rely on rigid restrictions that feel more like surveillance than support.
These tools create adversarial dynamics, leading to workarounds, arguments, and eroding trust.
Problem Statement
“Design a transparent and collaborative app approval experience that reduces family conflict while preserving trust and autonomy.”
Pain Points
All or Nothing Control
Apps either fully blocked or completely open, leaving no space for nuanced decisions.
Reactive Systems
Parents discovered issues only after damage occurred.
Broken Trust
Surveillance-heavy approaches pushed children toward workarounds and hiding behavior.
Daily Conflicts
Every app request became a negotiation, creating constant friction.
Research
Sixteen weeks from market analysis to human truth, validated at every step.
Phase 01
Secondary Research
- 93%use at least one parental control or safety tool.
- 83%believe they’re responsible for child’s online safety.
- 71%report their child has experienced online harm.
- 66%say technology has made parenting more challenging.
Phase 02
Competitive Analysis
- Most tools rely on push/email notifications; approvals arrive late or get missed.
- Parents see only app name and age rating. Privacy cues and risk signals missing.
- Flows default to approve/deny. Time-bound or conditional options absent.
Phase 03
Quantitative Survey
- Most parents aren’t tech-savvy. They need contextual help at decision time.
- Parents want information like age rating, privacy labels, and child’s reasoning.
- Denials need to communicate the "why" so children understand.
Design Pillars
The principles that guided every decision from sketches to ship.
Proactive Guidance
Intervene before damage, not after.
Contextual Transparency
Give parents the information they need at the moment of decision.
Relationship Preservation
Every interaction should strengthen trust, not erode it.
User Flows
Two roles, one shared system. Built so coordination feels invisible.
Child Request Flow
“I want a voice in the conversation. Explain why apps matter and let me feel my input shapes decisions.”
Parent Decision Flow
“I want confidence in my child’s choices with simple permission management.”
Usability Testing
Findings from real users that turned assumptions into evidence.
Participants
20 participants across UserTesting and Maze platforms
Methodology
Three-phase: pilot validation, quantitative metrics (heatmaps, completion rates), qualitative feedback
Confusing Reminder Notifications
Issue
21% of parents couldn’t clearly distinguish reminder notifications from regular ones.
Resolution
Grouped repeated notifications into single card.
Confusing Homepage Buttons
Issue
Users often tapped wrong button because CTA labels looked too similar.
Resolution
Introduced animated icon and highlighted banner.
Insufficient Data Points
Issue
Parents said app details weren’t enough for clear choices.
Resolution
Added community-based approval insights.
Before & After
Iterations from user testing that meaningfully shifted behavior.
Confusing Reminder Notifications
Before
Multiple reminders for same app appeared separately, creating unclear tracking.
After
Grouped repeated notifications into single card, helping parents track active requests easily.
Confusing Homepage Buttons
Before
Static red notification icon didn’t clearly signal urgency.
After
Introduced animated icon and highlighted homepage banner drawing attention to priority notifications.
Insufficient Data Points
Before
Parents only saw comments from children, making it difficult gauging app safety.
After
Added community-based insights showing how many parents approved same app.
Gallery
Reflections
Trust Yourself
Speaking up and sharing ideas confidently, because every perspective adds value.
Keep Everyone in the Loop
Open cross-functional team communication kept goals aligned and reduced rework.
Validate Ideas Early with Developers
Collaborating with developers early ensured designs were practical and easy to build.
