About ExhibitKit
ExhibitKit is a free tool that turns raw text-message exports - WhatsApp, Android SMS, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, or CSV - into clean, court-ready PDF exhibits. Each exhibit carries a SHA-256 integrity hash of your original export on every page, sequential Bates numbers, and a declaration-of-authenticity template.
Who it's for
People who need message history to tell their story in a formal setting but can't afford specialist software or a paralegal to format it: self-represented litigants in family court, small claims, and landlord/tenant disputes; budget-conscious attorneys and paralegals; and fraud victims documenting a scam for the police, the FTC/IC3, or their bank.
How it works
Everything happens in your browser. When you choose a file, ExhibitKit reads it locally, computes a cryptographic fingerprint of the original bytes, parses the messages, and builds the PDF on your own device. There is no upload, no account, and no database - and the site ships a strict Content-Security-Policy so the browser itself refuses to send your messages anywhere. You can watch your browser's network tab during a full session and confirm it: your messages never leave your device. Anyone can re-verify the hash later to prove the exhibit was built from exactly that file.
Design principles
- Deterministic, not AI. Every step is plain, auditable code. For a tool meant to support the integrity of evidence, that's deliberate - there's no model guessing at your messages.
- Private by construction. The privacy promise isn't a policy you have to trust; it's enforced by doing all the work in the browser and by the Content-Security-Policy.
- Honest about limits. We never claim an exhibit "will be admissible" or is "certified." ExhibitKit helps with court-ready formatting and tamper-evidence; whether a court admits it depends on your jurisdiction's rules and your testimony. See the FAQ.
- Open source. The whole thing is on GitHub - read it, audit it, or suggest a fix. For a tour of the stack and the decisions behind it, see how I built this.
Who built it
ExhibitKit is built by Isaiah Shawver, the maker of ScamKit.com, a free tool for checking suspicious links, messages, and phone numbers and walking scam victims through recovery. The two are companions: ScamKit helps you act on a scam; ExhibitKit helps you document and prove it. You can reach Isaiah on the contact page or @ShawverTech on X.
Why it's free
It's a static website with no servers to run, so it costs almost nothing to host - and the people who need it most are often the least able to pay. If you'd like to help keep it going, see ways to support it.