Keep the message and its context.

Before deleting or reporting

1. Preserve the complete thread, not only one cropped line.
2. Capture the displayed sender, date, time and time zone where available.
3. Keep the message text, any opt-out instruction, your reply and later messages together.
4. Record links as displayed; do not open a suspicious link to investigate it.
5. Retain the original file separately if you crop or annotate a working copy.

If there is voicemail or a quote form

1. Save the original voicemail audio if your app offers export; keep the full message, date, duration and displayed caller details. A transcript is only a working aid.
2. Write “no ring heard” if that is what you observed, not “proven ringless delivery.” Do not start recording live calls based on this checklist.
3. Preserve the version of any quote or signup disclosure already in your possession, with its capture date, named companies and confirmation. Do not submit another application to reconstruct the old one.
4. List each sender separately, distinguish message purposes and mark uncertain identity or timing as uncertain.

Make the record understandable

1. Use a simple chronological list: what arrived, when, what you did and the supporting filename.
2. Save relevant signup disclosures or account settings you already possess. Mark unknown facts as unknown.
3. Keep a secure backup you control. Avoid posting screenshots containing personal information.
4. Save any carrier or agency reporting confirmation with the same record.

Safety and limits

Do not reply to a suspicious message or disclose information to improve a record. A displayed sender is not verified identity. This checklist helps organize existing information; it does not establish admissibility, liability or any legal deadline.

Read the full preservation guide and reporting guide. Official safety and reporting guidance: FTC spam-text guidance and FCC complaint guidance.