Cloaked, the Mobile Privacy App: When Design Undermines Trust
Protecting your data shouldn’t mean compromising usability.
Criticism by Alex The Actualizer
In today’s digital world, privacy is more important than ever, which is why I was drawn to Cloaked, an app that promises to safeguard our personal information by providing disposable emails, phone numbers, and even virtual credit cards. As a UX/UI designer with 17 years of experience, I understand the value of a seamless, user-centered design, especially for a privacy tool that needs to inspire trust.
Unfortunately, despite its promising mission, Cloaked left me more frustrated than reassured. While exploring the app, I found its UX/UI to be scattered, with an almost childlike layout that feels out of sync with the serious goal of protecting privacy. In my experience, a well-designed app should be intuitive and professional, especially one focused on privacy where users need clarity and ease. Instead, the design choices here feel counterproductive, making it harder to accomplish simple tasks. If I’m struggling to navigate Cloaked, I can only imagine how other users might feel.
A tool for privacy wrapped in a frustrating user experience.
The home screen of Cloaked immediately presents a challenge in visual hierarchy and usability. As a privacy app, one would expect a clean, intuitive design that guides users seamlessly through its features. Instead, the layout feels cluttered, with oversized buttons for generating new numbers, emails, passwords, and usernames, all given the same visual weight. This design choice makes it unclear what action is most important, leaving users—especially new ones—wondering where to begin.
The minimalist design approach, while popular, comes across here as oversimplified, even juvenile. The generic icons and the large, bold “Home” header give it a somewhat unfinished feel, which is unexpected in a tool meant to protect sensitive information. This mismatch between purpose and design might lead users to question the app’s reliability, as a polished, professional look is often tied to trustworthiness in privacy-focused tools.
Further down, the “Data Removal” section adds to the clutter. Although it’s intended to provide value by showing users the app’s monitoring activity, its placement on the home screen feels misplaced, distracting from the main actions users might want to take. It’s information that might be better suited under an “Analytics” or “Monitoring” tab, rather than taking up valuable real estate on the landing page.
Lastly, the navigation bar at the bottom lacks clarity. Icons like “Identities” are ambiguous without further explanation, and even the “Home” icon is questionable given the page design. For an app focused on privacy, clarity and ease of navigation are essential, and this scattered layout could lead users to feel lost or uncertain, reducing the app’s overall effectiveness.
Privacy matters, but this design makes it hard to care.
The navigation structure in Cloaked adds to the overall confusion of the app’s interface. At first glance, the placement of the “Home” icon in the center rather than the far left feels counterintuitive. Traditionally, the “Home” page is positioned on the leftmost side, following standard app design conventions. This unexpected placement may disrupt users’ muscle memory, making navigation feel awkward from the outset.
Further complicating matters, the navigation icons themselves—Inbox, Calls, Home, and Identities—don’t provide clear guidance on the pages they lead to. For example, “Identities” is ambiguous without any accompanying text or tooltip to explain its purpose, which could leave users guessing what content they’ll find there. Similarly, the Inbox and Calls icons raise questions about their functions, as it’s unclear why a privacy app would prioritize these features on the main navigation bar.
When navigating between these screens, users are faced with inconsistencies in content and layout. Each page presents information in a way that feels disconnected, lacking a cohesive flow or structure. For instance, the content on the Home screen (with data removal metrics and options for generating new identities) feels at odds with the simplistic layouts of the other pages. This fragmented approach creates a disjointed experience, making it difficult for users to develop a clear mental model of how the app is organized.
These navigation and layout choices hinder the user experience, as they stray from intuitive design principles that promote ease of use and trust—essential qualities for a privacy-focused app. For Cloaked to meet its potential, the app’s navigation and page content need to be reorganized for clarity and consistency.
A privacy app that complicates what it promises to protect
The navigation design in Cloaked further highlights the app’s lack of coherence and attention to detail. For instance, “Home” is the only icon displayed in color (an orange hue), while all other icons remain monochromatic. This selective use of color feels arbitrary and fails to establish a consistent visual language. If “Home” is intended as the primary page, it’s unclear why it’s not placed in the traditional leftmost position, which is where users generally expect to find the main navigation point. Instead, “Home” is positioned in the center, deviating from standard design conventions and likely adding unnecessary friction for users.
The lack of icon consistency also contributes to the app’s scattered feel. For example, the “Identities” icon doesn’t intuitively convey what the page entails, leaving users to guess at its purpose. Similarly, while “Inbox” and “Calls” may be relevant features, they’re given equal prominence in the navigation, which seems disproportionate for a privacy app where generating cloaks or managing data should take priority.
Adding to the confusion, there’s no clear indication why certain pages are grouped together under this navigation structure or why they’re given this particular order. The inconsistent use of color, unclear iconography, and unconventional placement make it challenging for users to develop a mental model of the app’s structure, undermining the navigation’s effectiveness.
For a privacy-focused app, a clear, intuitive navigation system is essential to establish user trust. Unfortunately, the choices made here appear arbitrary, further detracting from the app’s credibility and ease of use.
Confusing Hamburger Menu
The use of a “hamburger” menu on the Inbox and Calls pages of Cloaked adds an extra layer of confusion to an already scattered design. Typically, a hamburger menu is intended to provide access to a broader range of app-wide settings or options, but here it leads to a menu that feels redundant, showing content nearly identical to what’s already available in the Inbox view.
Adding to the confusion, the same menu is accessible on the Calls page, but its relevance to that screen is unclear. There’s no clear rationale for why users would need to access this identical menu from both Inbox and Calls, as it doesn’t seem to serve any unique purpose on either page. This design choice leaves users questioning the function and significance of the menu, which ultimately detracts from the app’s usability.
For a privacy-focused app, every menu and button should have a clear, intuitive purpose. This repetitive menu not only fails to add value but also risks making users feel lost in an app that should instead inspire confidence and ease of use. Cloaked could benefit from refining its menu structure to ensure that every element serves a meaningful purpose and contributes to a streamlined experience.
Profile screen is preemptive and confusing
The placement and accessibility of the Profile button on Cloaked further complicate the user experience. For reasons unclear, the Profile icon is only available on the Home page. Typically, a profile or account access button is a persistent element across all screens, allowing users to quickly manage settings, account details, or preferences. By limiting access to this icon on just the Home page, Cloaked forces users to navigate back to this page to adjust any account-related information, which feels unnecessarily restrictive and inconvenient.
Additionally, the design of the profile menu itself doesn’t follow standard trends in app interfaces, resulting in a confusing list view. Elements like Settings, Refer Friends, and Help Center are listed here, but the organization lacks hierarchy or visual cues that would help users quickly identify key actions. This scattered structure diminishes usability, making it harder for users to locate important functions and adding to the overall disjointed feel of the app.
In an app focused on privacy, users need seamless access to settings and support options across all pages. Limiting the Profile button to the Home screen and failing to present a clear, intuitive menu undermines user confidence, creating a frustrating experience instead of a streamlined one.
Why does the bottom navigation disappear on a selection?
One of the more confusing design choices in Cloaked is the inconsistent navigation behavior when moving between different screens. For example, from the Home screen, users can select sections like “In Progress” within the data removal area, which leads to a deeper analysis page. However, once on this new screen, the app’s bottom navigation bar disappears entirely. This inconsistency is not just confusing—it disrupts the user’s flow, as they are now forced to backtrack rather than simply tapping the bottom icons to switch to another main area of the app.
For a privacy-focused app, users expect a certain level of intuitive consistency to foster trust and usability. The disappearing navigation bar, paired with unclear pathways for returning to previous screens, makes it feel as though the app is working against the user. This design oversight is not only frustrating but risks driving users away, as it lacks the polish expected of a tool that claims to safeguard personal information.
In UX/UI design, a persistent navigation system is essential, particularly for an app with multiple sections and data-heavy content like Cloaked. By removing the bottom navigation on certain screens, Cloaked inadvertently complicates the user journey, making it feel disjointed and, at times, almost juvenile. This inconsistency in navigation doesn’t just hinder usability; it undermines the app’s reliability as a privacy tool.
Reordering the Profile Menu for Clarity
In its current form, the profile menu in Cloaked presents options in a seemingly random order, making it challenging for users to find what they’re looking for quickly. For an app focused on privacy, ease of access to essential features like Settings, Help Center, and Log Out is crucial. Without a clear hierarchy, users may feel disoriented or even question the app’s reliability.
By reordering the options into a more logical sequence, Cloaked can provide a smoother, more intuitive experience. Here’s a proposed order:
• Profile View: Placing this at the top gives users immediate access to their profile details, which is typically the first thing they’d expect to see in a profile menu.
• Settings: Often, users visit the profile menu to adjust their settings, so placing it high in the order makes this action easy to locate.
• Help Center and Chat with Us: These support options should be grouped together to provide a clear path for users needing assistance, making it easier to access help resources in one section.
• Get Started and Refer Friends: These secondary options can come next, as they are less critical to core app functionality but still relevant for users exploring additional features or inviting others.
• Log Out: Finally, placing Log Out at the bottom aligns with standard design conventions, where exit or account closure options are often last to prevent accidental logouts and ensure that it’s accessible but not intrusive.
This revised structure not only aligns with user expectations but also reduces cognitive load by grouping related items together and presenting them in a logical flow. When users don’t have to scan through a scattered list, they can locate options more quickly, enhancing both efficiency and satisfaction with the app.
For a privacy tool like Cloaked, where trust and ease of use are paramount, this small adjustment can make a significant impact on how users interact with the app. It sends a subtle yet strong message: that the app is designed with care and attention to detail, prioritizing the user’s needs and making navigation as seamless as possible.
The bottom navigation bar in Cloaked could benefit from consistent color-coding and a reordering of icons for improved usability. Currently, only the Home icon is highlighted in color, while the others remain monochromatic. Applying distinct colors for each active icon (such as green for Home, blue for Inbox, purple for Calls, and red for Identities) would provide users with immediate visual cues, helping them quickly identify their location within the app. Using these colors, already present in other parts of the app, would create a cohesive visual language and reinforce users’ mental models, enhancing clarity and reducing ambiguity.
Color-Coding for Visual Cues
Applying unique colors for each selected icon would improve both clarity and usability, as users could instantly recognize which section they’re in. This minor adjustment would contribute to a more consistent and user-friendly design, aligning with established UI principles.
Reordering Icons for Intuitive Layout
Reordering the icons to place Home on the far left would also align with standard navigation patterns, as most users expect the Home button to occupy this position. This familiar layout would make navigation more intuitive and enhance overall orientation within the app.
Together, these adjustments in color-coding and icon order would make Cloaked feel more polished, intuitive, and trustworthy, delivering a user experience that matches the app’s focus on privacy and security.
Final Thoughts: A Missed Opportunity for User-Centered Design
From the cluttered layouts and inconsistent navigation to the lack of intuitive organization, both the Cloaked app and its website feel as though they were built without a cohesive approach to User Experience (UX) or User Interface (UI) design. Rather than guiding users through a smooth, intuitive process, the interface leaves them confused and frustrated, facing disjointed menus, misplaced navigation bars, and a scattered layout that fails to prioritize essential functions.
For an app focused on privacy—an area where user trust is paramount—this lack of design coherence is a critical flaw. When key features are buried, navigation is inconsistent, and visual cues are missing or arbitrary, users are left with a sense of uncertainty rather than confidence. This experience risks driving away the very audience Cloaked aims to attract, as potential customers may abandon the app and website before fully exploring its capabilities.
Ultimately, Cloaked’s scattered design undermines its potential. For a tool with promising privacy features, these design missteps limit its usability and erode user trust, creating barriers to adoption and reducing the likelihood of long-term customer engagement. To succeed in a competitive market, Cloaked would greatly benefit from a focused, user-centered design overhaul—one that aligns with industry standards and meets user expectations for clarity, trust, and ease of use.