SafeStep

Inspiration

Knowing what you want to do on a website is different from knowing which button to click. Competing download buttons, unfamiliar menus and unclear shopping information can turn an ordinary task into an intimidating one. SafeStep's goal is to help people understand the next step and make better-informed browsing decisions without giving up control.

How the whole app works

SafeStep is a Chrome extension prototype with a conversation beside the website you are using. Its nine capabilities share the same interface, page reader and task controls rather than operating as nine separate apps.

Open SafeStep on a public page and give it access to that site.
Type a request, such as finding an article, locating a publisher's installer, checking a seller or hiding distractions. Contextual tool buttons are also available.
For requests that need AI, the extension uses a paired local Node.js service connected to Google Gemini. Local address checks, supported publisher rules and cleanup tools can also operate without Gemini. The service connection and temporary pairing must be active; having an API key saved is not sufficient by itself.
Review the response. Navigation offers Show me for guidance or Take me there for a proposed automatic route. Other requests return a source-based check, comparison or cleanup preview. The chat supports clarification and follow-up requests, although reliable interpretation of arbitrary requests remains unfinished.
Approve the relevant action. Automatic navigation needs a separate Start automatic approval; cleanup needs Apply cleanup. Pause, Stop and takeover controls keep the user involved.
Inspect the result and its limitations. A changed page must be checked again, and uncertain or missing evidence should remain unknown. Final file downloads, installations, purchases and consequential account changes remain with the user.

The nine features

1. Visual website guidance

SafeStep highlights a current page control and displays a short instruction beside it, with more context in the panel. This is intended to help a person find a menu, search field, article section or next link. On a supported Wikipedia search, the instruction changes from typing the requested subject to pressing Enter after the text is entered. Scoped local Wikipedia journeys have been demonstrated. General AI guidance across arbitrary tasks and websites is not consistently reliable yet.

2. Website address verification

SafeStep checks the actual URL and hostname rather than relying on a brand name printed on a page. For example, it can explain why amazon.io or amazon.com.example.org does not match the expected amazon.com address. It can inspect a supplied address without visiting it. Domain identity is kept separate from reputation: a matching address does not certify every seller or product, and a different address alone does not prove fraud.

3. Website risk checks and warnings

With the required site access, consent, paired service and available quota, SafeStep can check eligible public URLs on arrival and proposed navigation destinations. Google Web Risk provides known-threat checks for categories such as malware and social engineering. Local observations can identify suspicious page patterns. A separate, bounded Washington State complaint source can provide merchant-report evidence, clearly labeled as allegations. Results distinguish a threat match, no match, missing coverage and unavailable services. This is not a general search of BBB, Trustpilot or all online reviews. We have not verified an automatic warning on a real scam clothing shop in the final installed build; a harmless provider test is not that demonstration.

4. Help finding the intended download

SafeStep uses the requested software, platform and package format to identify supported publisher download controls. WinSCP, VLC and 7-Zip are current examples. A standard Windows installer should remain distinct from a portable ZIP, source archive, other product or advertisement. Users can follow a highlight or approve eligible navigation toward the control. The extension leaves final file activation to the user. It does not scan the downloaded file, guarantee an executable is harmless or reliably identify every download on every website. WinSCP navigation can still pause or reject a fresh request as stale.

5. Seller reputation checks

On supported Resell.store listings, SafeStep identifies the selected seller and displays available received seller-service feedback with source and coverage. It is designed to keep the seller account and listing tied to the current request so feedback for one seller is not reused for another. Source-provided ratings, samples and any demo designation must stay visible. Exact Amazon third-party seller feedback is unavailable; Amazon address verification does not replace it. No feedback means unknown, not an invented positive or negative verdict.

6. Product review checks

SafeStep separates product-specific feedback from seller service and listing claims. Supported Mozilla add-on pages can provide catalog identity and product-review evidence. For physical listings, the product, edition or variant and condition matter; available listing facts are not independent reviews. Resell physical products may have no independent product-review coverage. A well-rated product does not establish that a particular seller, used item or selected offer is trustworthy.

7. User-approved automatic navigation

Take me there offers a task-specific route for eligible public-page navigation. Start automatic is the user's explicit approval to proceed. The task engine checks current controls and destinations and exposes Pause, Stop and takeover. Automatic navigation is intended to handle eligible links, public searches, scrolling and read-only menus while stopping at consequential actions. It is implemented and has worked in bounded journeys, but final-build reliability remains incomplete. Unexpected pauses, stale-context failures and a disappearing tucked control strip after some Wikipedia navigation are known limitations. It is not an autonomous agent that can complete anything on any website.

8. Reversible ad and distraction cleanup

SafeStep first lists recognized regions in a Cleanup preview. Nothing should be hidden until the user chooses Apply cleanup. Restore page returns the changes made by SafeStep on that document, including when the conversation is cleared. Download controls, important content, forms, consent controls and security warnings are intended to remain protected. Real WinSCP ad removal and restoration were demonstrated. Coverage depends on recognized regions and ads actually being served; the prototype does not remove every advertisement or safely classify every overlay.

9. Finding and comparing alternatives

From a supported item, SafeStep can compare the same product from other sellers, similar products, or selected offers. The user reviews the baseline and requirements before Find options. Available Resell and Mozilla sources support different kinds of comparisons; physical goods and software catalogs are not interchangeable evidence. Comparisons preserve requirements such as budget, currency, condition and features, while keeping seller feedback, product feedback and costs separate. Unknown shipping is not free, unsupported savings are not calculated, and no matching options is a valid outcome. These tools are implemented, but coverage is source-limited and a complete AI-driven shopping journey is not independently accepted on the final build.

How we built it

The extension uses TypeScript, WXT and React, with shared runtime-validated contracts and a Node.js service for provider connections. Gemini interprets goals and proposes bounded operations using current public page references. Google Web Risk, public Resell.store and Mozilla sources, and the scoped Washington complaint dataset supply different kinds of evidence. Credentials remain server-side. Model output is treated as untrusted input and is checked against allowed actions; the extension does not execute model-generated JavaScript.

Challenges and current status

The biggest challenge was connecting a plausible AI interpretation to reliable actions on a changing page. Menus, advertisements, scrolling, document transitions and delayed responses can invalidate an earlier target. Pairing expiry, request limits and unavailable sources also need clear recovery states.

SafeStep is a partially working hackathon prototype, not a finished extension with universal coverage. The final source is version 0.8.12. Current testing still exposes inconsistent end-to-end AI navigation, and successful provider responses or passing code tests do not prove a full journey worked. Some demonstrations use local supported routes rather than live Gemini. Exact Amazon seller feedback, broad third-party store-review research, AI-image authenticity detection, screenshot-based universal navigation and downloaded-file malware scanning are not implemented. There is no whole-product independent acceptance for the final build.

Accomplishments and what we learned

We brought the nine capability areas into one chat, implemented approval and intervention controls, and demonstrated scoped website guidance, publisher download targeting and reversible cleanup. We published the final source checkpoint before the code deadline. Most importantly, we learned to distinguish an implemented tool, a successful individual step and a genuinely reliable complete experience. Source coverage and uncertainty must be visible rather than hidden behind a confident AI answer.

What's next

Our first priority is dependable end-to-end navigation, clearer connection and recovery states, and independent retesting of the actual final artifact. After that, we want broader tested website coverage, stronger permitted reputation sources, more accessible guidance and real user testing. The larger goal remains simple: help people find their way, understand risky clicks and make informed choices while staying in control.

Built With

Updates

Victor V started this project — Nov 08, 2026 10:48 AM EST

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