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Sam Xiao
Sam Xiao

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I built 404Found: free tools to check scam texts, suspicious phone numbers, and fix everyday tech problems

Hey DEV community 👋

I’ve been working on 404Found, a free platform designed to help people solve everyday digital problems faster and stay safer online.

The idea is simple: when something feels suspicious, broken, or confusing, users should have one place to check it quickly.

What 404Found does

404Found currently includes tools and guides for:

  • Checking suspicious phone numbers
  • Detecting possible scam text messages
  • Troubleshooting common tech issues
  • Using temporary utility tools like disposable email
  • Reading step-by-step guides for everyday digital problems

The goal is to make the experience fast, simple, and useful for non-technical users.

Why I built it

A lot of people search Google only after they have already clicked a suspicious link, called back an unknown number, or shared personal information.

I wanted to create a site that helps people pause, check, and understand the risk before acting.

At the same time, many tech-help websites are overloaded with ads, slow pages, or generic AI content. I’m trying to build something more direct: practical tools, clear answers, and useful scam-awareness content.

Current focus

Right now I’m working on:

  • Improving mobile performance
  • Expanding the phone number lookup database
  • Adding more scam text examples and detection flows
  • Building better SEO pages around real user intent
  • Improving monetization without making the site annoying to use

Tech stack

The site is built with:

  • React
  • Vite
  • Tailwind
  • Supabase
  • Vercel
  • Programmatic SEO pages
  • Prerendered metadata for better indexing

Looking for feedback

I’d love feedback from the DEV community, especially on:

  • The homepage clarity
  • Mobile performance
  • Scam-checking user experience
  • Useful tools I should add next
  • SEO/programmatic page structure

You can check it here:

https://404found.com

Thanks for reading — and happy to hear any suggestions.

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