Free Tools for Stalking Victims: What They Do and When to Use Them

What a Good Safety Tool Does

A good tool helps you do something specific and safe.

• It helps you assess, plan, document, or report.
• It protects your privacy, ideally by running locally in your browser and not collecting your answers.
• It is free or clear about cost.
• It doesn't promise to stop a stalker.
• It cites real sources and tells you its limits.
• It includes a quick exit for safety.

Stalking.org's Free Tools

Every tool runs in your browser, and nothing you type is transmitted to our servers or stored.

• [Risk Assessment](/#risk-assessment). Five questions that estimate your threat level and suggest next steps.
• [Safety Plan](/#safety-plan). A discreet, printable action plan with a safe contact, code word, safe location, and go-bag.
• [Evidence Auditor](/#evidence-audit). A four-point check that your screenshots and records are ready for police or court.
• [Police Report tool](/#police-tools). Helps you structure a clear statement and find the right agency.
• [TRO Builder](/#tro-tool). Helps you organize facts for a protection order request.
• [Data Broker Removal](/#data-removal). Direct opt-out links and pre-written removal text.
• [Safety Audit](/#generator). A quick checklist for accounts and devices.

Which Tool to Use When

• You're unsure how serious it is: Risk Assessment.
• You want a plan: Safety Plan.
• You have screenshots and messages: Evidence Auditor.
• You're ready to report: Police Report tool.
• You want an order: TRO Builder.
• Your address is online: Data Broker Removal.
• You worry about accounts: Safety Audit.

Free Government Tools

• FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center. File an online complaint about internet crime at IC3.
• FTC IdentityTheft.gov. Report identity misuse and get a recovery plan at IdentityTheft.gov.
• CISA Secure Our World. Learn how to secure accounts at Secure Our World.
• Office for Victims of Crime directory. Find victim services at Help in Your State.

Apps: Helpful and Harmful

Some apps are designed for safety, such as ones that let you share your location with trusted people or sound an alarm. Others, sold as "monitoring" or "tracking" apps, are used for stalking. The same feature, like location sharing, can protect or harm depending on who controls it.

• Choose apps from reputable sources, and read permissions.
• Don't use apps that ask you to hide them or disable security features.
• Be careful sharing location with anyone who could misuse it.
• If you find an app you didn't install, read stalkerware.

Red Flags in Any Tool

• It asks for your Social Security number, passwords, or banking information.
• It charges for guaranteed results.
• It requires you to create an account with details the stalker could find.
• It collects your answers or sends them to a server without clear consent.
• It claims to identify or track a person for you.
• It has no information about who runs it.

How to Use the Tools Safely

Use a safe device. Print what you need and store it somewhere private. Use the Quick Escape button if someone may see your screen. Clear your history on shared devices. Read the Stalking Resource Center guide for more on using our site safely.

A Simple Starting Routine

1. Take the Risk Assessment.
2. Create a Safety Plan.
3. Save today's evidence and check it with the Evidence Auditor.
4. Run the Safety Audit on your accounts.
5. Remove your information from people-search sites.
6. When you're ready, use the Police Report tool.

A Decision Guide for Choosing a Tool

If you aren't sure where to start, ask these questions.

• Do I need to understand how serious this is? Start with the Risk Assessment.
• Do I need to feel prepared? Make a Safety Plan.
• Do I have evidence to organize? Use the Evidence Auditor and your log.
• Am I ready to report? Use the Police Report tool, then see how to report stalking.
• Do I want a court order? Use the TRO Builder and read protection against stalking.
• Is my address online? Use Data Broker Removal.
• Am I worried about my phone or accounts? Run the Safety Audit.

Sample Workflows

These examples show how tools can be combined.

Online harassment. Take the Risk Assessment, save screenshots and check them with the Evidence Auditor, run the Safety Audit on your accounts, report to platforms, and file with the FBI's IC3.

A former partner who knows where you live. Create a Safety Plan, use Data Broker Removal to take down your listings, review shared accounts, and ask about a protective order with the TRO Builder.

A coworker who won't stop. Keep a log, use the Police Report tool, tell HR, and use the Protection Guide for workplace scenarios.

Accessibility and Language

Tools should work for everyone. Our site is designed to be readable on a phone and uses plain language. If you need help in another language or format, tell us through the Contact Us page. When you work with government agencies, you can ask for an interpreter or an accommodation.

Tools for Advocates, Employers, and Teachers

If you help others, the same tools can support your work. Advocates can walk clients through the Safety Plan and Evidence Auditor. Employers can share the Risk Assessment and the Protection Guide's workplace scenarios with HR. Teachers and counselors can use the guides to prepare students. Remind people to use safe devices, and don't collect or store anyone's answers, since our tools run locally.

What Tools Can't Do

Tools can't stop a stalker, investigate a crime, or replace police, courts, and counselors. They can help you think clearly, keep good records, and prepare. Use them as one part of a plan that includes official channels and trusted people.

How We Think About Privacy in Our Tools

We built our tools to run in your browser so that what you type stays on your device. That design is a deliberate safety choice: it means there is no account to hack and no record on our servers for anyone to subpoena or steal. The tradeoff is that we can't recover your answers if you lose them, so print or save what you need.

Printing and Offline Use

For safety, you may prefer paper to files. Print your Safety Plan, your timeline, and any checklists, and keep them somewhere the stalker can't reach, such as with a friend or at work. If you suspect your devices are monitored, print from a library or another safe device. A short printed summary of your plan can be a lifeline when your phone is unavailable.

Keeping Your Results Safe

After you use a tool, think about where the output goes. If you save a file, store it on a device the stalker has never touched, or on paper. Don't email your plan to an account the stalker can read. Give a copy to a trusted person, and share your code word. Review and update your materials whenever your situation changes.

Start Where You Are

You don't need to use every tool or understand every option today. Pick the one that matches your biggest worry right now, use it, and come back for the next one when you're ready. Progress with a single tool is still progress.

The best tool is the one you actually use. Start with one.

Sources and further reading

• FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)
• IdentityTheft.gov (Federal Trade Commission)
• Secure Our World (CISA)
• Help in Your State (Office for Victims of Crime)