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Kautio is a privacy-first check-in app. You set up a check-in before a real-world plan -- a first date, a solo hike, a marketplace meetup. If you don't respond when Kautio checks in on you, the contacts you chose are notified, tier by tier, in the order you set. The schedule runs on our servers, so it keeps running even if your phone is off.

Open the app, tap New check-in, and add what you're doing, when the activity starts, and where. Choose when Kautio first checks in on you after the start (1, 5, 10, 15, 30, or 60 minutes; 30 by default) and how long your grace window is (up to 15 minutes; 5 by default), add contacts who have accepted your invitation to your tiers, and tap Schedule check-in. Once it shows as Scheduled, you can put your phone away.

Kautio sends you a notification and opens your grace window. If you don't snooze or dismiss before it ends, your Tier 1 contacts are notified.

Kautio runs the schedule on our servers, not on your phone. If your phone is off, out of battery, or out of signal, the grace windows still open and close on time, and your contacts are notified on schedule, tier by tier.

A tier is one group of contacts in your check-in's order. Tier 1 is notified first. Each tier gets its own grace window before it's notified, so you can still snooze or dismiss. After a tier is notified, Kautio waits your wait-between-tiers time and checks in on you again; if you don't respond, the next tier is notified, and so on. You can set up to four tiers of up to 10 contacts each.

An optional second deadline, 24 or 48 hours after your activity starts. If you haven't tapped Clear follow-up by then, everyone in your tiers gets a text. Dismissing a check-in doesn't stop it; only clearing it, or cancelling the check-in before it starts, does. Kautio reminds you an hour before it's due.

Install Kautio once to accept your invite. After that, they don't need to keep the app open or stay online. If a check-in reaches their tier, they get a text with a link to the check-in's details in the app, plus an app notification if notifications are on. Only you can snooze or dismiss your check-in.

A short text with your name, the check-in's title, and a link. The link opens the details you added in the Kautio app: the description, location, photos, a timeline, notes, and your location trail if you turned on location sharing. Contacts in tiers that weren't notified see none of it.

No. Replying YES (or anything else) to the invitation SMS does not accept it. Invitations are accepted only in the app: tap the link in the message, install Kautio if you haven't, and choose accept, decline, or block on the invite screen. Reply STOP only if you want to stop receiving all Kautio messages.

All Kautio texts to your number stop -- check-in alerts if you are someone's contact, follow-up and "all good" texts, and new invitations. Our messaging provider applies the block, and Kautio can't lift it; only you can, by replying START to the same number. If you have Kautio installed with notifications on, check-in alerts can still reach you as app notifications. If someone is counting on you as a contact, tell them you've opted out so they can change their plan. Full details on our SMS terms page.

Snooze pushes the check-in back by your wait-between-tiers time (5 minutes to 24 hours) without notifying anyone. You can snooze during any grace window, and every later tier moves back by the same amount. Your contacts never know you snoozed.

Yes. Dismissing ends the check-in and cancels every tier not yet notified. If a contact had already been notified, you can send those contacts an "all good" text; contacts who were never notified hear nothing. Dismissing doesn't cancel your follow-up. Before the activity starts, you can tap Cancel check-in instead, which ends the follow-up too.

Your account, your contacts, and the check-ins you schedule, including when each step happened and whether each alert was delivered, plus basic usage and crash data. If you turn on location sharing for a check-in, Kautio records your location while it's Active; only you and contacts in tiers that were notified can see it. Check-in data is deleted 90 days after the check-in ends. Between check-ins, Kautio doesn't record your location.

No. Kautio is scheduled, not always-on. Between check-ins, Kautio doesn't record your location, and there's no persistent location history. A location trail exists only if you turned location sharing on for that check-in, is recorded only while the check-in is Active, and is deleted 90 days after the check-in ends.

No. We don't sell your data to third parties. Our revenue comes from plans, not from your information.

Yes. You don't have to close your account to remove data. In the app you can remove contacts at any time, and delete photos you've attached to a check-in while it's still Scheduled. Each check-in's data, including any location trail, notes, and photos, is deleted automatically 90 days after it ends. A minimal audit record of each check-in's schedule and notification outcomes — timestamps, which contacts were notified and whether delivery succeeded; no location, notes, photos, or descriptions — is kept separately for 7 years for legal-compliance purposes. If you'd like us to erase specific data for you, email support@kautio.app with the details — your account stays active.

You start with 3 free credits. Each check-in uses 1 credit. Every plan includes the same check-in -- the same grace windows, tiers, texts, and follow-up. Full Access is $9.99/month or $79.99/year: schedule check-ins whenever you need them; one is Active at a time. Kautio Pro is $24.99/month or $199.99/year for people who run back-to-back appointments -- check-ins can overlap and repeat on a schedule, with saved presets, contact groups, and higher scheduling caps. Subscriptions are billed through the Apple App Store or Google Play; cancel anytime in your device's subscription settings.

Kautio Pro is for people whose appointments chain -- realtors, field workers, traveling providers. It adds capacity and convenience, not protection: check-ins can overlap instead of waiting for each other, repeat on a schedule, and start from saved Safety Presets and Contact Groups; scheduling caps are higher. The check-in itself -- confirmation, escalation, notifications -- is identical on every plan.

Kautio is available for iPhone and Android in the United States and Canada. Safety contacts must also have a phone number in the United States or Canada to receive notifications.

In the app, go to Settings > Account > Delete account; your account is deleted right away. If you can't use the app, request deletion by email from kautio.app/delete-my-account; we verify your identity and process it within 30 days. Deleting your account doesn't cancel a subscription; cancel that in your device's subscription settings. Encrypted backups containing your data expire within 30 days. The same minimal audit record (schedule and notification outcomes only; no location, notes, photos, or descriptions) is kept for 7 years after each check-in ends, including past account deletion, for legal-compliance purposes.

No. Kautio notifies your personal contacts, not professional responders. It's a planning and notification tool, not a professional response service. If you need immediate help, call your local emergency number.