Is Duck.ai safe for kids?
Under our published methodology, Duck.ai scores strongly on data practices: its terms commit to no model training on chats, metadata stripping and 30-day provider deletion (checked 2026-07-29), and we found no qualifying incident record involving minors. The gap for families is age control: the terms set a 13+ minimum, but access is anonymous with no account and no age check we could find.
Verified 29 July 2026 · An assessment by Halo Aware under our published methodology
How it scored
Each dimension is scored 0–4 against published anchors and must cite the evidence below. The overall score is weighted arithmetic, not judgement calls.
| Dimension | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Content safety×25 | 3/4 | e6, e7, e2Terms prohibit content promoting suicide, self-harm or disordered eating, sexual content, and endangering children, with CSAM reported to authorities (e6); safety mechanisms may block prompts/outputs (e7). No minor-specific mode or published crisis protocol found. |
| Age controls×20 | 1/4 | e1, e10The terms state a 13+ minimum and require parental permission below the age of majority (e1), but access is anonymous by design: no account or sign-in (e10) and no age-assurance step we could find (checked 2026-07-29); we found no mechanism enforcing the stated minimum. |
| Data practices×20 | 4/4 | e3, e4, e5Provider agreements bar training on prompts/outputs and require deletion within 30 days (e3); IP/metadata stripped before proxying (e4); chats stored locally by default with in-product deletion and 18-month auto-delete for encrypted sync (e5). No minor-specific data terms found. |
| Design pressure×15 | 4/4 | e8, e2, e10, e5Framed as free, private, optional AI utility over third-party models (e8, e2); no accounts or personas (e10), no companion framing or re-engagement mechanics evident, and chats are device-local by default (e5). |
| Parental visibility×10 | 3/4 | e10, e9, e5No accounts (e10), so no parental-feature surface, but the open web surface is supervisable by parent-side tools: our extension ships a Duck.ai capture module, capture proven across the interaction-path matrix in our onboarding harness (e9). Device-local chats preclude account-level oversight (e5). |
| Track record×10 | 3/4 | e6, e7We found no qualifying court, regulator or major-outlet incident record involving minors on Duck.ai (searched 2026-07-29); scored on that absence, consistent with cohort anchors, alongside the platform's published prohibited-use and safety terms (e6, e7). |
What we found
Every claim is sourced and dated. If something here is wrong or out of date, tell us and we will fix it.
e1Duck.ai's combined privacy policy and terms state the service is only intended for people age 13 or older, and that users under the age of majority in their jurisdiction must have a parent or legal guardian's permission to use it (checked 2026-07-29).
"Duck.ai is only intended for and available to people who are age 13 or older, if permitted in your jurisdiction. If you are under the relevant age of majority in your jurisdiction, you must have your parent or legal guardian's permission to use Duck.ai."
https://duckduckgo.com/duckai/privacy-terms · captured 29 July 2026
e2Duck.ai is a multi-model chat utility that proxies third-party models; its terms mirror the usage policies of the underlying providers (Anthropic, Azure OpenAI, OpenAI, together.ai) and state that using it for illegal, harmful, regulated and sexually explicit purposes is prohibited (checked 2026-07-29).
"The models accessible through Duck.ai are subject to the model provider's usage policies. Broadly, that means that using Duck.ai for illegal, harmful, regulated, and sexually explicit purposes is prohibited. Duck.ai allows you to use models from leading model providers without being tracked. These model providers have usage policies, and our Terms therefore mirror those policies."
https://duckduckgo.com/duckai/privacy-terms · captured 29 July 2026
e3The policy states DuckDuckGo has agreements with all model providers barring them from using prompts and outputs to develop or improve their models, and requiring deletion of information received within at most 30 days, with limited exceptions for safety and legal compliance (checked 2026-07-29).
"In addition, we have agreements in place with all model providers that further limit how they can use data from these anonymous requests, including not using Prompts and Outputs to develop or improve their models, as well as deleting all information received once it is no longer necessary to provide Outputs (at most within 30 days, with limited exceptions for safety and legal compliance)."
https://duckduckgo.com/duckai/privacy-terms · captured 29 July 2026
e4The policy states that all metadata containing personal information, such as the user's IP address, is removed before prompts are sent to the underlying model providers (checked 2026-07-29).
"All metadata that contains personal information (for example, your IP address) is removed before sending Prompts to underlying model providers (for example, Anthropic, Azure OpenAI, OpenAI, together.ai)."
https://duckduckgo.com/duckai/privacy-terms · captured 29 July 2026
e5By default chats are saved locally on the user's device (with an opt-out of saving at all); chats can be deleted individually or wholesale via the Fire Button, and optional encrypted server-side Sync & Backup chats are auto-deleted after 18 months of inactivity (checked 2026-07-29).
"No matter which version you choose, you can delete a chat by clicking the delete icon next to it or delete all chats by using the Fire Button within Duck.ai or within your browser. Your recent chats are saved locally on your device, unless you opt out of saving recent chats altogether. [...] Sync & Backup chats are automatically deleted if not accessed for a period of 18 months."
https://duckduckgo.com/duckai/privacy-terms · captured 29 July 2026
e6The terms prohibit use for content promoting suicide, self-harm or disordered eating, sexually explicit or obscene content, and anything endangering children including AI-generated CSAM, which the policy notes is reported to the relevant authorities (checked 2026-07-29).
"Accordingly, it is a violation of these Terms to use Duck.ai for anything: Illegal, discriminatory, or harmful, including generating hateful, harassing, or threatening content; terrorism, violent extremism, or animal abuse content; or content promoting suicide, self-harm, or disordered eating [...] Sexually explicit or obscene. Endangering children, including generating or uploading child sexual abuse material (CSAM), including AI-generated CSAM; facilitating the exploitation or abuse of minors; or sexualizing minors in any context. [Note: We report CSAM to the relevant authorities]"
https://duckduckgo.com/duckai/privacy-terms · captured 29 July 2026
e7The terms state that safety mechanisms may block certain prompts and outputs, that users can report harmful or illegal outputs in-product, and that outputs may be offensive (checked 2026-07-29). We found no published self-harm crisis-handling protocol or minor-specific content mode.
"Safety features may try to prevent you from misusing Duck.ai. To avoid misuse, safety mechanisms may block certain Prompts and the generation of certain Outputs. You can report infringing and illegal Outputs. [...] Outputs may be offensive. Outputs don't represent our views."
https://duckduckgo.com/duckai/privacy-terms · captured 29 July 2026
e8DuckDuckGo's general terms frame Duck.ai as a private utility: optional AI that lets users chat privately with ChatGPT, Claude and other AIs in one place, positioned alongside its search and browser products rather than as a companion (checked 2026-07-29).
"It also offers private, useful, and optional AI, including Duck.ai, which lets you chat privately with ChatGPT, Claude, and other AIs, all in one place."
https://duckduckgo.com/terms · captured 29 July 2026
e9Observed by Halo AwareHalo Aware's browser extension includes a dedicated Duck.ai capture module (shipping in Chrome Web Store build v1.5.0, verified live 2026-07-29); its platform-onboarding coverage certificate records capture proven across the full interaction-path matrix (9 paths, including streaming, refresh and multiline) on 2026-07-18.
https://duck.ai · captured 29 July 2026
e10Observed by Halo AwareDuck.ai is usable without any account or sign-in: Halo Aware's onboarding pipeline harvested and captured live conversations as a guest (no login) on 2026-07-18, and every conversation runs at the same URL with no per-chat path.
https://duck.ai · captured 29 July 2026
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