How to protect your rental deposit

Most deposit disputes come down to one question: “Was this scratch there when you moved in?” The cheapest and strongest answer is a set of dated photos taken on day one.

On move-in day

Before unpacking, photograph every room corner to corner: walls, floor, ceiling, windows.
Take close-ups of defects: scratches, stains, cracked tiles, damp. Put a pen next to them for scale.
Shoot the kitchen and bathroom separately: inside cupboards, taps, hob, fridge.
Photograph the meters (electricity, water, gas).
Walk through the whole place in one short video.

Turn the photos into proof

The date on a phone photo is easy to change, and a landlord can dispute it. The same day, add the photos to the Handover pack on the File Proof page. Your photos stay on your phone; only their fingerprints are anchored in the Bitcoin blockchain. You get two small files: a pack list (.json) and a proof (.ots).

Share and keep

Email the photos and both proof files to your landlord. That also records that they were informed that day.
Keep everything in one folder with a cloud backup.

On move-out day

Shoot the same angles again and make a second pack. If there is a dispute, you put the two packs side by side; anyone can check in the Check tab which photo existed on which day and that none was changed.

This is not a notarisation or a qualified electronic timestamp; a court weighs it as evidence. For high-value disputes, also consider an official inspection report.

5 common mistakes

Sending the photo on WhatsApp as a “photo”. The app compresses it, so the copy received no longer matches. Send it as a “document/file”.
Editing the original. Cropping, filters or re-saving create a new file. Leave the original untouched.
Waiting to prove it. A proof carries the date you take it. Prove the photo on the day you shoot it.
Keeping the .ots in one place only. Lose the phone and you lose the date. Email it to yourself or put it in the cloud.
Not telling the other side. Sending the proof that day also records that they were informed.

A message you can send

“Hello, attached are the photos I took at today's handover and their dated proof files. Anyone can check that these files existed in this exact form today at gepara.com/dosya-kaniti.html or at opentimestamps.org.”

The next day: one check

Bitcoin confirmation arrives within a few hours. The next day, drop the file and the .ots on the Check tab; for important matters keep a screenshot of the result. More: How it works · FAQ.

Get a free proof Choose your photos; files never leave your phone, only their fingerprints are anchored in the Bitcoin blockchain.