How do I save evidence of workplace harassment on my phone?

It started with a comment. Then messages after hours, a joke in front of the team, a meeting where you were the target. You want to report it, or you already did, and someone told you to keep a record. This page covers what to write down and how to save messages so they hold up. It also explains why the record should not live on a work phone, and the deadlines to know. It is not legal advice. We checked each fact against the EEOC, Acas, Apple and WomensLaw on 2026-10-08.

What the law calls harassment (US)

The EEOC defines harassment as “unwelcome conduct” based on a protected trait. The list is race, color, religion, sex (including sexual orientation, transgender status or pregnancy), national origin, age 40 or older, disability and genetic information. It is unlawful in two cases. One: you must put up with it to keep the job. Two: it is “severe or pervasive enough” to create a hostile work environment.

The EEOC lists examples of offensive conduct. They include “offensive jokes, slurs, epithets or name calling”, threats, “ridicule or mockery”, “offensive objects or pictures”, and “interference with work performance”. The harasser can be a supervisor, a co-worker or a non-employee, such as a customer.

Keep a record from today

Acas, the UK workplace advice service, suggests a diary of:

• what happened
• how it made you feel
• the dates and times it happened
• any evidence, “for example emails or screenshots of social media posts”
• any witnesses

Write each entry soon after the incident. Keep entries short and factual: what was said, word for word if you can, and what you did next.

If nobody saw it, write it down anyway. Acas says “Most bullying happens out of sight of others, so you might not have any witnesses. This should not stop you reporting the bullying.”

Save messages so they hold up

Messages are often the strongest part of a record.

1. Take a screenshot as soon as a message arrives. The sender can edit or delete it later.
2. Make sure the sender’s name or handle and the date show in the screenshot.
3. Capture the messages around it, so the context is clear.
4. Do not crop, mark up or edit the original. Make a copy if you want to highlight a line.
5. Note in your diary which screenshot goes with which incident.

Photos and screenshots carry a date in the file. Apple’s guide shows that anyone can change it in Photos with Adjust, so never edit the date on evidence. Write the real date in your diary as well.

Why the record should not live on a work phone

A work phone and a work account belong to your employer. Apple explains that an organization that supervises an iPhone can “install a profile to control what features your device has access to” and apply restrictions. Apple adds that you may see a message that “your organization can monitor your internet traffic”. On iPhone, Settings, General, VPN & Device Management shows which profiles are installed.

There is a simpler risk too. If you leave, or your employer suspends or fires you, your access to the work phone, email and chat ends at once. A record that lives only there goes with it.

So keep your diary and your screenshots on your own phone, in your own accounts. Copying company documents is a different matter, and can break your employer’s policies. Ask a lawyer or a union representative before you take work files.

Report it, and keep copies

The EEOC encourages employees to tell the harasser the conduct “is unwelcome and must stop”. It also says to “report harassment to management at an early stage”. This can matter later. In some hostile environment cases, an employer can avoid liability if the employee did not use its complaint process without a good reason.

In the UK, Acas suggests raising it informally first, often with your manager. If your manager is the problem, talk to someone else, such as another manager or HR. If that does not work, or it is too serious, you can raise a formal grievance.

Keep a copy of everything you send HR or a manager, and note the date of every meeting.

The deadlines (US)

The EEOC says “you need to file a charge within 180 calendar days” of the discrimination. That becomes 300 days where a state or local agency enforces a law against the same kind of discrimination. For harassment, the clock runs from “the last incident of harassment”. The EEOC then looks at all the incidents when it investigates, even older ones. Federal employees usually have 45 days to contact an agency EEO counselor.

Recordings

Some people want to record a meeting. Recording laws differ by state. WomensLaw explains that some states allow recording with one person’s consent. Others need consent from everyone in the conversation. Ask a lawyer first.

How York Vault keeps the record

York Vault keeps screenshots, documents, notes and voice notes behind its own code. Install it on your own iPhone or Android phone, not a work device. The backup goes to your own iCloud or Google Drive, encrypted. See what we can and cannot see.

• The diary as a note. Write each incident as an encrypted note, or record a voice note right after a meeting. See notes and voice notes.
• Screenshots without the camera roll. Share them into York Vault from Photos, then remove them from Photos. The import and cleanup page shows the steps. Then empty Recently Deleted.
• Original details stay. York Vault keeps each item’s capture date and original file name inside the encryption, and sorts by the capture date.
• A second lock. An album code keeps the case album closed even when the library is open.
• Hand it over with dates. Shares and exports remove dates and location by default. For a lawyer or the EEOC, turn on Keep details. Export everything gives the originals in a folder, free on every plan.

The same rules about original files apply in family cases. See keeping evidence for a divorce or custody case. If the person harassing you is a partner or an ex, read keeping a record of domestic abuse safely.