Managing Notification Preferences

How Notifications Work

TimeProof uses a server-backed notification system with real-time delivery:

Events occur — a timestamp anchors, a purchase completes, verification status changes
Server creates notification — stored in the database with type, title, and details
WebSocket push — the notification is instantly pushed to all your active sessions
Bell icon indicator — unread notifications show a count badge in the navigation bar
Notification dropdown — click the bell to see recent notifications with details

Notifications are persistent — they’re stored server-side even if you’re offline. When you reconnect, all missed notifications appear.

Five Notification Categories

You can toggle each category independently:

1. Purchases

Type	Example
`purchase_success`	”Purchase Complete — 100 credits added”
`purchase_failed`	”Purchase Failed — payment could not be processed”
`org_credits_purchased`	”Org Credits Added — 350 credits for Acme Corp”
`org_credits_low`	”Credits Running Low — Acme Corp has 20 credits remaining”
`plan_verification_due`	”Verification Renewal Due — review your current monthly plan”

Enable this category to track credit purchases and low-balance warnings. Especially useful for organization admins managing shared credit budgets.

2. Timestamps

Type	Example
`timestamp_submitted`	”Timestamp Submitted — 5 files queued for anchoring”
`timestamp_anchored`	”Timestamp Anchored — document.pdf confirmed on Polygon”
`timestamp_failed`	”Timestamp Failed — anchoring could not complete after retries”
`org_timestamp_anchored`	”Org Timestamp Complete — 12 files anchored for Acme Corp”

This is the most important category for active users. The timestamp_anchored notification confirms your proof is live on the blockchain and certificates are ready for download.

3. Verification

Type	Example
`verification_started`	”Verification Started — ID check in progress”
`verification_complete`	”Verification Complete — identity verified for 12 months”
`verification_expiring_30`	”Verification Expiring Soon — 30 days remaining”
`verification_expiring_7`	”Verification Expiring — 7 days remaining”
`verification_expiring_1`	”Verification Expires Tomorrow — renew to keep LG access”
`verification_expired`	”Verification Expired — LG timestamps unavailable”

Verification notifications include proactive reminders at 30, 7, and 1 day before expiration. These help you keep verified access to instant timestamps and Legal-Grade without interruption.

4. Certificates

Type	Example
`lg_upgrade_success`	”LG Upgrade Complete — evidence package ready”
`certificate_ready`	”Certificate Ready — download your Legal-Grade package”

Certificate notifications tell you when Legal-Grade evidence packages are generated and ready for download. If you use LG frequently, keep this category enabled.

5. Organization Activity

Type	Example
`org_created`	”Organization Created — Acme Corp is ready”
`org_deleted`	”Organization Deleted — Acme Corp has been removed”
`member_invited`	”Invitation Sent — invited 0x1234 to Acme Corp”
`member_joined`	”Member Joined — Alice joined Acme Corp”
`member_removed`	”Member Removed — Bob was removed from Acme Corp”
`member_left`	”Member Left — Carol left Acme Corp”
`member_role_changed`	”Role Changed — Dave is now Admin in Acme Corp”

Organization notifications keep team owners and admins informed about membership changes and team activity.

Managing Your Preferences

From the UI

Click your profile icon → Settings
Scroll to Notification Preferences
Toggle each category on or off
Changes save automatically

From the API

PATCH /api/settings
{
  "notify_purchases": true,
  "notify_timestamps": true,
  "notify_org_activity": false,
  "notify_verification": true,
  "notify_certificates": true
}

See API Rate Limits for request limits on the settings endpoint.

Reading and Managing Notifications

Mark as Read

Click a notification to mark it as read. The unread count badge decreases. You can also click Mark All Read to clear all unread indicators at once.

Delete Notifications

Individual notifications can be deleted from the dropdown. Deleted notifications are permanently removed and cannot be recovered.

WebSocket Connection

The real-time notification system uses WebSocket connections:

Automatic connection — established when you sign in
Automatic reconnection — if the connection drops, it reconnects with exponential backoff (2s → 4s → 8s → … → 60s max)
No user action required — the reconnection is invisible and handled automatically
Session-based — the WebSocket authenticates using your session cookie

If notifications seem delayed, check your internet connection. The WebSocket will reconnect automatically when connectivity is restored.

Recommended Settings

User Type	Suggested Configuration
Individual user	All categories ON
Organization admin	All categories ON, especially purchases and org activity
Organization member	Timestamps ON, org activity ON, others optional
High-volume user	Timestamps OFF (too many alerts), purchases ON

Account Settings — manage your profile
Organizations and Teams — team notification context
Packs and Plan Verification — verification and onboarding rules
Troubleshooting Common Issues — notification delivery problems