How to Document Stalker Text Messages From Unknown Numbers for Police

If you are in immediate danger, call 911. For free, confidential support: Stalking Prevention, Awareness, and Resource Center (SPARC) at stalkingawareness.org · VictimConnect: 1-855-484-2846 · National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233

Most advice about saving threatening texts assumes you know who is sending them. Block the number. Filter by contact. Report the sender.

But stalkers don’t play by those rules.

They use burner phones. They rotate through prepaid SIM cards. They send messages from apps that generate temporary numbers. They text from friends’ phones. When you block one number, a new one appears within hours.

This is exactly why standard “screenshot and block” advice fails victims of stalking. You can’t filter by sender when the sender keeps changing. You need a system that captures everything — from every number, known or unknown — automatically, silently, and permanently.

Why Stalking Documentation Is Different From Other Evidence Collection

The “Course of Conduct” Problem

In most U.S. states, stalking is legally defined as a pattern of repeated behavior (a “course of conduct”) that would cause a reasonable person to feel fear. A single creepy text from an unknown number is unsettling. Thirty creepy texts from fifteen different unknown numbers over two months is a stalking case.

This means your evidence needs to prove:

1. The behavior is repeated — not a one-time event.
2. It follows a pattern — even when the numbers change, the tone, content, or timing is consistent.
3. It causes reasonable fear — the messages contain threats, surveillance references (“I saw you at the store today”), or persistent unwanted contact after a clear request to stop.

The challenge is that stalkers deliberately make it hard to connect the dots. Different numbers, different apps, different times of day. If you rely on manually saving each message, you will inevitably miss some. Months later, when you sit down with a detective to build your case, there will be gaps in your timeline that weaken it.

Automatic, comprehensive archiving solves this problem.

The Unique Challenges With Unknown Numbers

You Can’t Filter — You Must Capture Everything

When you know the harasser’s number, you can set up a filter to forward only their messages. With stalking from unknown or rotating numbers, that approach is useless.

Instead, your archiving system must forward every single incoming SMS to your evidence inbox. Yes, this means you’ll also capture spam, delivery notifications, and texts from friends. That’s fine. A cluttered inbox that contains every stalking message is infinitely more valuable than a curated one with gaps.

The Numbers Themselves Are Evidence

Even though you may not know who owns a particular burner number, the number itself is a data point that law enforcement can use:

• Detectives can subpoena carrier records to determine when a prepaid SIM was activated, where it was purchased, and sometimes link it to a credit card or location.
• If the stalker uses the same carrier or activates numbers in the same geographic area, it helps build a profile.
• Patterns in timing (e.g., new texts always come from a new number right after you block the previous one) demonstrate coordinated behavior — not random coincidence.

Your forwarded emails automatically capture the sender’s number, giving law enforcement a complete list of every number used against you.

Step-by-Step: Building Your Stalking Evidence Archive

Step 1: Create a Dedicated Evidence Email

Use a safe device — not your primary phone if you believe it may be monitored — to create a new email account.

Choose an encrypted provider if possible: - ProtonMail — end-to-end encrypted, based in Switzerland - Tutanota — encrypted, no phone number needed to register

Rules: - Do not use your real name in the address (e.g., [email protected]) - Use a strong, unique password and enable 2FA - Do not save the credentials on any device the stalker could access

Step 2: Install SMS to Email Forwarder

Download SMS to Email Forwarder from the App Store. It’s free to install.

Configuration for stalking cases: 1. Enter your secure evidence email address 2. Complete the one-time Shortcuts Automation setup (~2 minutes) 3. Critical: Do NOT set any sender filters. You want to capture messages from ALL incoming numbers. 4. Close the app. It runs in the background via iOS Shortcuts.

Step 3: Send the “Cease Contact” Message

If you have not already done so, send one clear, written message to the most recent number:

“Do not contact me again. Any further messages from you or any number associated with you are unwanted. I am documenting all communications.”

This step is important because: - It removes any “I didn’t know they didn’t want to hear from me” defense. - Courts often require proof that you communicated a boundary. - After sending this, do not respond to any further messages. Ever. Engagement — even angry engagement — can be used to argue mutual communication.

Step 4: Start Your Stalking Incident Log

While the app auto-archives every text, you should also maintain a manual incident log for non-text incidents. This is a simple spreadsheet or document with columns for:

This log ties your text evidence to the broader pattern of stalking behavior (drive-bys, workplace visits, social media activity) and is exactly what detectives and prosecutors need to build a case.

What Happens With Your Evidence

Filing a Police Report

When you are ready to file a report (and you should do this sooner rather than later — don’t wait for the “perfect” amount of evidence):

1. Bring your incident log — organized, printed, chronological.
2. Provide your evidence email access — or print/export the relevant emails as a PDF packet.
3. Give them the list of numbers — your email archive contains every sender number, creating a ready-made list for subpoenas.
4. Request a case number — this creates an official record, even if police can’t act immediately.
5. Ask about a preservation letter — Police can send formal legal requests to carriers (T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon) to preserve account data associated with the stalker’s numbers before it’s automatically purged.

Obtaining a Restraining Order / Order of Protection

Your email archive directly supports a restraining order petition by demonstrating:

• Repeated contact — the sheer volume of forwarded emails
• Escalation — if the messages become more threatening over time
• Disregard for boundaries — messages received after your “cease contact” text
• Multiple numbers — proving the stalker is deliberately evading blocks

Supporting a Criminal Prosecution

In a criminal stalking case, your automated archive provides:

• A complete, tamper-proof timeline that the defense cannot argue was selectively edited
• SMTP headers on every email proving delivery timestamps
• Sender numbers for every single message, enabling law enforcement to issue targeted subpoenas
• No gaps — unlike manual documentation, automatic forwarding doesn’t miss messages received while you were asleep, at work, or too distressed to act

Protecting Yourself While Documenting

Digital Safety

• Do not post about your stalking situation on social media. Stalkers monitor victims’ online activity.
• Review your phone’s location sharing settings. Disable “Share My Location” in Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services if you suspect the stalker has access to your Apple ID.
• Check for unknown apps. Look for unfamiliar apps on your phone that could be spyware. If you find one, do not delete it before consulting with law enforcement — its presence is evidence.
• Consider a phone inspection. Organizations like the Coalition Against Stalkerware provide resources for detecting and safely removing surveillance software.

Physical Safety

• Keep your phone charged and with you at all times.
• Tell a trusted person about your situation and share your evidence email password with them — if something happens to you, your evidence is preserved.
• Vary your routines. Stalkers exploit predictability.
• If you feel you are in immediate danger at any time, call 911.

Resources

Disclaimer: We are software developers, not lawyers or law enforcement officials. This article provides technical solutions for evidence preservation and should not be construed as legal advice. Stalking laws and evidence requirements vary by state and jurisdiction. Always consult with local law enforcement and a licensed attorney regarding your specific situation. If you are in immediate danger, call 911.

Every message is a data point. Every data point builds your case. Download SMS to Email Forwarder — capture everything, from every number, automatically.