Intro to DocuSAFE

Why Use This App?

This app was designed to help survivors document the technology abuse, harassment, and stalking they are experiencing. This may include threatening messages, harassing social media posts, unwanted repeat calls, or online impersonation, among other abusive behaviors. By storing documentation of abuse in one central location, you may be able to more easily identify the abuse that is occurring and the extent to which it is occurring, including possible escalation and patterns in behavior. If you were to choose to pursue legal action against the abusive person, this app may be used to document and store evidence of the abuse that can be shared with law enforcement or a judge during a legal proceeding.

Setting a Passcode 

A 4-digit PIN will be required in order to use this app. This is to increase the security and privacy of the important information you are collecting. Use a set of numbers that you will remember, but someone else won’t likely guess. For privacy and safety purposes, your personal information is not collected through this app. That means that your PIN cannot be recovered or reset if you forget it. In the case that you cannot remember the PIN, you will need to delete the app and download it again. If you notice any unauthorized activity in the app, be sure to change your PIN.

Logging In

After creating an account, login simply consists of using your PIN or Biometrics (if enabled). If there are consecutive failed login attempts, the app will be locked for a brief period of time.

Once logged in, you will see a list of the most recent activity on the app. You can easily see if anyone else has accessed your account or attempted to login into the app. Tapping on “View All” will show you all the activity.

Adding Documentation

To add documentation, tap the “Documentation” icon in the bottom navigation panel. Follow the steps given to add details. Once you have finished adding details (type, name, date, etc.), hit the purple “Save” button. You can then add any images, video, audio, screenshots, screencasts to that incident log. When all documentation is added, tap the “Finish” button.

Each time you add documentation, you are logging an individual incident or a series of incidents. You can choose which type of content you are documenting – an email, text or instant message, image, or social media. You can then either upload a screenshot, image, audio, or video of the content from your device’s gallery or you can take an image or video from within the app. Note: If you upload from your gallery, the screenshot or image will also continue to remain in your gallery unless you delete it. After this step, you can add some additional information and context if you choose.

Review the Tips for Documenting Abuse section to ensure you are capturing all the details you may need when you’re documenting and uploading content.

Reviewing Documentation

Your recent activity and access to your full activity log will always be immediately available on the Home Screen of the app. There is also a “Documentation” icon on the bottom navigation bar. Once in the full Documentation Log, you can sort the documentation by date or content type (email, message, image).

Getting Help

From the home screen, tap “Get Help”. From there, you can choose “Talk to Someone Now” for a list of hotlines and resources or “Help Using the App” for more information on navigating the app itself. If you need immediate assistance, Contact 911 if it’s safe to do so. See the Talk to Someone Now section for more resources.

Logging Out

Tap the “More” icon in the bottom navigation. Under “Account”, tap “Log Out”.

Deleting Your Account

Tap the “More icon in the bottom navigation. Under “Account”, tap “Delete”. You will be prompted to confirm. Tap “Yes” to delete content. Please note that once deleted, content cannot be restored.

Back-Up Options

To back-up your documentation so that it’s saved in another location, you can use the cloud account that you’re connected with (either iCloud or Google) to save your content or you could email yourself documentation. In any case, consider whether someone else may have access to the cloud account or the email before saving or sending documentation.

Sharing Content With Others

You have the option to securely share some or all of your documentation with others. This may be a trusted friend or family member, law enforcement, an attorney, or court personnel. By clicking on the “Share” button, you can walk through an option to send content to someone. The recipient will receive a link and when they click the link, before they can access the content, you will be prompted on your device, to approve their access. This adds an additional layer of security in the event that someone else gets ahold of the link or you no longer want to share that content. You can also print your documentation if you choose to. Learn more in the Sharing Content with Others section.