How we work
The principles and safeguards behind every registry in the network: how cases are documented, how consent is handled, and how families and information are protected.
- 01
Case criteria
We document cases where a family genuinely does not know the whereabouts or fate of their loved one. Each registry focuses on people missing from its country, whether they disappeared at home, in transit, or in the diaspora.
- 02
Consent
Nothing is published without the consent of the submitting family. Families decide what appears, control their loved one's page, and may request changes or removal at any time.
- 03
Non-attribution
We record the person and the family's search, not perpetrators, not causes, and nothing that assigns blame. This keeps families safe and the registries open to everyone.
- 04
Review
Every submission is reviewed by our team before it is published, to protect accuracy and the family's safety.
- 05
Privacy
The identity of the person making a report is never published. Tips and sensitive details are received through secure channels and shared only where they help the search, with consent wherever possible.
Our guiding values
Dignity
We honour every name and every story with respect and humanity. The missing are people, never case numbers.
Integrity
We act honestly and accountably, and we are open about our methods, our data handling, and our limits.
Humanitarian focus
We document the missing and support the families searching for them. We are strictly non-political and welcome families from every side of every divide.
Accessibility
Information reaches families wherever they are and in the languages they think in: free, permanent, and publicly searchable.
Each registry's ethics
Each registry publishes its own detailed ethics and safeguarding page.