Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to the most common questions about SAR Portal. Can’t find what you’re looking for? Contact support@sarportal.com.

Open SAR Portal →

Getting Started

How do I create my account?

1. Register at sarportal.com
2. Check your email for an invitation
3. Click the activation link
4. Verify your email with the one-time code
5. Log in at app.sarportal.com

Full Setup Guide →

My invitation link expired. What do I do?

Invitation links expire after 7 days. Contact support@sarportal.com and we’ll send a new invitation.

Can I change my email address?

Currently, email addresses cannot be changed as they’re linked to your identity verification. Contact support if you need to use a different email.

How do I reset my password?

SAR Portal uses passwordless authentication via one-time codes. Each time you log in, you’ll receive a fresh code via email. There’s no password to reset!

Cases & Requests

How do I create a new case?

Create New Case →

1. Click Cases in the sidebar
2. Click Create New Case
3. Select request type, enter subject details
4. Click Create Case

What’s the difference between manual cases and portal cases?

How do I handle a request for someone not in our systems?

1. Create a case for the request
2. Search your systems for the person’s data
3. Document what you searched
4. Add notes describing your search efforts
5. Close the case as “Completed - No Data Found”

This documents your due diligence in case of audit.

What do the different case statuses mean?

Learn More About Statuses →

Can I reopen a closed case?

No, closed cases cannot be reopened. If you need to address a follow-up request from the same person, create a new case and reference the previous case ID in your notes.

Deadlines & Compliance

What is the GDPR deadline for responding?

GDPR requires you to respond within 30 days of receiving a request. For complex cases, you can extend this to 90 days, but you must inform the subject of the extension within the first 30 days.

How do I extend a deadline?

View Your Cases →

1. Open the case
2. Click Request Extension in the case actions
3. Select the reason for extension
4. Add notes explaining the complexity
5. The system records the extension and new deadline

What happens if I miss a deadline?

Missing GDPR deadlines can result in:

• Complaints to data protection authorities
• Regulatory investigations
• Potential fines

SAR Portal helps prevent this with:

• Dashboard warnings for approaching deadlines
• Email notifications before due dates
• Overdue alerts

How do I prove we handled a request properly?

SAR Portal automatically maintains:

• Complete audit logs of all actions
• Timestamps for every change
• Document version history
• User activity records

View Compliance →

Documents & AI

What file types can I upload?

Maximum file size: 50 MB per file

How does AI PII detection work?

SAR Portal uses a two-layer AI system:

1. Pattern Analysis - Detects 50+ entity types using pattern recognition
2. Contextual AI Analysis - Provides contextual understanding for complex cases

The AI identifies personal data like names, emails, addresses, government IDs, financial info, and more.

Learn About AI Redaction →

Is AI redaction accurate?

AI detection typically achieves 90%+ accuracy for common PII types. However:

• Always review AI detections before applying redactions
• Some context-specific data may be missed
• Unusual formats might need manual detection
• The AI provides suggestions - you make final decisions

Can I undo a redaction?

No, redactions are permanent on the redacted copy. However:

• The original document is preserved
• A new redacted version is created
• You can always start fresh from the original

Why isn’t the AI detecting anything?

Common reasons:

• Document is a scanned image without OCR text
• File is corrupted or password-protected
• Text is in an unusual format
• Document genuinely contains no PII

Try:

1. Ensure the document has selectable text
2. For scans, use higher quality images
3. Check the document opens correctly

Public Portal

How do I get my portal URL?

Open Settings →

Your portal URLs are displayed in the Public Portal Access section of the Integrations page. You can also create additional time-bound URLs for specific campaigns.

Can I customize my portal’s appearance?

Yes! You can customize:

• Company logo - Upload your logo
• Brand color - Set your primary color
• Welcome message - Customize the greeting
• Request types - Enable/disable specific types

How do I add the portal to my website?

Add a link in your privacy policy:

<a href="https://app.sarportal.com/public/submit/YOUR-ORG-ID">
  Submit a Data Request
</a>

Or embed instructions for staff to direct inquiries to your portal.

Can I disable the public portal?

Yes, in Settings > Integrations, you can manage your portal URLs. You can disable or delete portal URLs, and when disabled:

• The portal URL returns “Portal Unavailable”
• You can still create cases manually
• Re-enable anytime

Users & Permissions

How do I invite team members?

Manage Users →

1. Go to Users in the sidebar
2. Click Invite User
3. Enter their email address
4. Select their role
5. Click Send Invitation

What are the different user roles?

Full Role Details →

Can I remove a user?

Yes, admins can:

1. Deactivate - Revokes access but keeps audit history
2. Delete - Completely removes the user

A user’s invitation expired. How do I resend?

1. Go to Users
2. Find the pending invitation
3. Delete it
4. Send a new invitation

Billing & Plans

What plans are available?

View Your Plan →

Is there a free trial?

Yes! All plans include a 14-day free trial with full access to all features. No credit card required to start.

How do I upgrade my plan?

Manage Billing →

1. Go to Billing in the sidebar
2. Click Change Plan
3. Select your new plan
4. Confirm the upgrade
5. New limits apply immediately

How do I cancel my subscription?

1. Go to Billing
2. Click Cancel Subscription
3. Access continues until your current period ends
4. Data is retained for a grace period

What happens when I hit my case limit?

• Your public portal shows “temporarily unavailable”
• Admin buffer allows a few extra manual cases
• Existing cases continue normally
• Counter resets on your billing date

Security & Privacy

Where is my data stored?

All data is stored in EU data centers (Microsoft Azure EU regions) and never transferred outside the EU.

Is my data encrypted?

Yes:

• At rest: AES-256 encryption
• In transit: TLS 1.2 or higher
• Keys: Microsoft-managed encryption keys

Who can access my organization’s data?

Only users you invite to your organization. Each organization’s data is completely isolated through tenant separation.

Can SAR Portal staff see my data?

No. Your data is encrypted and isolated. Support staff cannot access your cases or documents without explicit permission during a support session.

How do I delete my account?

Account Settings →

See Account Deletion for full details on:

• Deleting your user account
• Deleting your entire organization
• What happens to your data

Troubleshooting

I can’t log in

1. Check your email - Look for the one-time code
2. Check spam/junk - Codes sometimes land there
3. Wait and retry - Codes expire after 5 minutes
4. Clear browser cache - Try incognito/private mode
5. Contact support - support@sarportal.com

The portal isn’t loading

1. Check your internet connection
2. Try a different browser
3. Clear browser cache and cookies
4. Disable browser extensions
5. Check status.sarportal.com for outages

Documents won’t upload

Common issues:

• File exceeds 50 MB limit
• Unsupported file type
• File is corrupted
• Browser blocking upload

Try:

1. Check file size and type
2. Try a different browser
3. Ensure stable internet connection
4. Try uploading a different file to isolate the issue

I’m not receiving email notifications

1. Check spam/junk folders
2. Verify notification settings are enabled
3. Check email address is correct in your profile
4. Whitelist noreply@sarportal.com

Check Notification Settings →

Still Have Questions?