How does PostMortem work?

How do you create a PostMortem account?

PostMortem is a free iOS (15.6 or later) and Android app. There is no web signup; everything you do as an owner happens in the app, while recipients use the web only to open what you left them.

• Sign up with email and password

  Enter your email and choose a password. Each time you sign in, the app emails you a 6-digit code that is valid for 60 seconds. You can turn on Face ID or fingerprint sign-in afterwards so you do not need the code every time. A password reset link is valid for 10 minutes.

• Generate and save your personal access key

  The app generates one personal access key for your account and presents it as a key card, a QR-style image. Save it to your photo gallery. This key is what encrypts everything you put in a box, and it is self-managed: you hold the only key, which is also what keeps PostMortem out of your data, so keep the card in more than one place. While you are alive you can issue a new card from the app; managed protection is coming soon.

• Share the key card with your recipients

  Every recipient card carries that same key as a QR code. Recipients will need it to decrypt a released box, so give them a copy in advance, in whatever way suits you: a printed card, a photo, a file in a place they can reach.

How do you create a message box?

A message box is the unit that gets released. You can create as many as you like, each with its own recipients and interval, so a box for your partner and a box for a business colleague can hold different things and run on different schedules.

• Text messages

  Up to 3 per box, with no length limit. A personal letter, practical instructions, or both. See writing a legacy letter if you are unsure where to start.

• Login credentials

  Accounts and passwords, with no count limit. This is where most people put email, cloud storage and banking logins, plus two-factor backup codes.

• Files

  Up to 5 per box, 20 MB each. Images, PDFs, Office documents, text and CSV files, and audio (mp3, wav, aac, m4a).

• Financial records

  Debts, obligations or assets you want someone to know about, with no count limit. Keep it general; what happens to debts after death varies by country and state. This is general information, not legal advice.

How do you add recipients?

Each box needs at least one recipient and has no maximum. A recipient is simply a name and an email address; they do not need the app or an account.

For every box you decide whether to tell recipients in advance. If you choose the intro email, PostMortem lets them know a box exists for them and that they will need the key card you have shared. If you prefer, the box stays private and the recipient first hears about it when it is released. Many people send the intro so the eventual email is expected rather than alarming.

How do you choose a check-in interval?

The interval is how long PostMortem waits for you before it releases the box. Each box has its own.

The presets are hourly (used for the test box), daily, weekly and monthly (30 days). Custom intervals run from 1 hour up to 12 months (360 days); the custom picker starts at 7 days. A short interval means faster release but more frequent check-ins; a long interval is calmer but means a longer wait for recipients. If you travel somewhere with patchy connectivity, dead man's switch for travellers covers how to pick a sensible length.

How do you check in?

Checking in is one tap in the app. That single tap resets the timer on every active box at once, so you do not have to visit each box separately.

You will not be left to remember on your own. As an interval runs down, PostMortem sends reminders by email and push notification at about 60%, 70%, 80% and 90% of the interval. The one with 10% or less remaining is the final reminder. On a 30-day box that means nudges around day 18, 21, 24 and 27. The reminders tell you to open the app; the check-in itself only happens with the tap in the app, not from the email. See what happens if you miss a check-in for the detail.

What happens when a box is released?

If the interval runs out without a check-in, the box is released within minutes, exactly as you set it and after four reminders. The schedule you set is the rule, so pick an interval you will keep and use the test box first.

Each recipient gets an email with a link to the recipient page. You, the owner, also get an email telling you the box was released. A released box becomes view-only in the app, and you can delete it. If you are alive and simply missed the deadline, the message has gone out: delete the box, tell your recipients it was a false alarm, and pick an interval you will keep.

How do recipients open a released box?

• Open the link from the email

  The email leads to a recipient page in any modern browser. No app, no account.

• Present the key card

  Scan the QR code on the key card with the phone camera, or upload the card image. Without the card the page cannot decrypt anything, because the key never left your phone in the first place.

• Decrypt in the browser

  Decryption happens in the recipient's browser. Messages, credentials, files and financial records become readable there.

• Download a PDF and a ZIP

  Recipients can download a PDF of the box contents plus a ZIP of the attached files, so they have a copy to keep offline.

• Reminders if they do not open it

  If a recipient has not opened the box, PostMortem sends a reminder email every 14 days, up to 12 times.

How is PostMortem encrypted?

PostMortem is end-to-end encrypted. Messages, passwords, file names and file contents, and debt details are encrypted on your phone (AES-256) before upload and decrypted in the recipient's browser. PostMortem's servers never see the plaintext of those contents.

The box name, recipient names and email addresses and the check-in schedule stay readable so reminders and delivery work. If a box title would itself be sensitive, choose it with that in mind. The security page goes into the design in more detail.

What is the test box?

The test box lets you watch a release end to end before trusting the app with anything real. One tap creates a sample box on a 1-hour interval, addressed to your own email via a +postmortem_test alias, containing a sample message, a sample credential and a sample financial record. Do not check in, wait about an hour, and the release email arrives in your inbox. Open it, scan your own key card, and you will see exactly what a recipient sees.

Can you edit or delete a box?

Active boxes can be edited at any time: change the messages, add or remove files and credentials, change recipients, or change the interval. Released boxes are view-only but can be deleted, which removes them for recipients too.

How do you delete your PostMortem account?

Account deletion is done inside the app. Deleting your account deletes all of your boxes, including released ones, so recipients lose access to anything already delivered. If someone has already received a box, make sure they have downloaded the PDF and ZIP before you delete.

PostMortem is free, with no subscription; see pricing for the full picture, or the FAQ for shorter answers.

Frequently asked questions

• Do I have to check in for every box separately?

  No. One tap in the app resets every active box at once, whatever their intervals.

• Can I check in from the reminder email?

  No. Reminders arrive by email and push, but the check-in itself is the one-tap button in the app.

• What if I miss the deadline but I am fine?

  The box is released exactly when you set it, after four reminders at about 60%, 70%, 80% and 90% of the interval. Pick an interval you will keep, let the test box show you the whole flow first, and if a release was a false alarm, tell your recipients and delete the box.

• What if a recipient loses the key card?

  PostMortem cannot recover a lost key. While you are alive you can issue a new card from the app and share it again, so it is worth checking in with recipients occasionally.

• Do recipients need to install anything?

  No. They open the link in a browser, scan or upload the key card, and the box decrypts there. They can download a PDF and a ZIP of files.

• What does PostMortem's server know about my box?

  Messages, passwords, file names and contents, and debt details are encrypted on your phone (AES-256) before upload, so the server never sees their plaintext. The box name, recipient names and emails and the check-in schedule stay readable so reminders and delivery work.