Getting Started
Getting Started: Viewer
Your job is staying current — knowing what's happening in your jurisdiction, finding what you need fast, and catching anything relevant to your active cases. Here's what the Viewer role gives you to do that.
What you can do as a Viewer
Viewers receive, search, and act on bulletins. Your Local Feed gives you an automatic start-of-shift briefing. Subscriptions watch your active cases for you. And when you need to find something specific, text and map-based search put it in reach.
- See the most recent bulletins in your jurisdiction automatically via the Local Feed
- Receive bulletins matched to your interests — the tags you selected during onboarding determine which tag-filtered bulletins reach you
- Search bulletins by keyword, location, tag, case detail, and bulletin type
- Search by area — search, center, and zoom the map to find bulletins in any jurisdiction
- Run a Photo Search to identify a subject against existing bulletins
- Set up subscriptions that notify you when a new bulletin matches your criteria
- Save bulletins from active cases to your Saved tab for fast retrieval
- Control your feed with Clutter Controls — reduce bulletin types that don't apply to your work
- Set notification preferences by bulletin type, channel (SMS, email, push), and frequency
First things to do after logging in
Your first login walks you through a setup wizard for notifications, alert filters, and tag interests. Once that's complete, do these five things.
- 1
Check your Local Feed
Open the Local Feed tab and confirm it looks right for your area. This is your automatic start-of-shift briefing — the most recent bulletins from your agency's configured jurisdiction, updated in real time. If something looks off, contact your Program Admin.
- 2
Set your notification preferences
Click your name in the upper right and select Settings > Notifications. Configure which bulletin types notify you by SMS, email, or push — and at what frequency. Preferences can be customized by category: high-priority bulletins, bulletins sent by others, subscriptions, and Collaboration Group activity.
- 3
Set up subscriptions for your active cases
Open the Received tab and create subscriptions for anything you're actively watching — a license plate, a physical description, a specific location. Subscriptions alert you when new bulletins are created by others, even if you're not on the distribution — set them up now to get intelligence that matters to you.
- 4
Try a map-based search
Open Search and select Map View. Search, center, and zoom to a location you care about and see what bulletins come back. Map search is your tool when you need bulletins from a specific area — not just your configured jurisdiction. Get familiar with it before you need it in the field.
- 5
Learn your inbox tabs
Your inbox has five tabs: Received, Sent, Saved, Messages, and Feed. Spend two minutes clicking through each one. Understanding the structure now saves you from hunting later.
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getting-started/viewer-local-feed.pngLocal Feed — showing recent bulletins in the user's configured jurisdiction
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Your five essential how-to guides
These are the guides most relevant to your first week. Bookmark them — you'll come back to them.
Understanding Your Inbox
Learn the five inbox tabs — Received, Sent, Saved, Messages, and Feed — and how they work together.
Read the guide →
Map-Based Bulletin Search
Search for bulletins using the map — search, center, and zoom to the area you want, and see what bulletins are there.
Read the guide →
Setting Up Subscriptions
Get notified automatically when a bulletin matching your criteria enters the system — by license plate, case type, location, and more.
Read the guide →
Saving & Finding Bookmarked Bulletins
Save bulletins from active cases to your Saved tab so they're always one tap away — no searching required.
Read the guide →
Setting Your Notification Preferences
Control which bulletin types notify you, by which channel, and how often — so you get what matters without the noise.
Read the guide →
Tips for Viewers
A few habits that make the platform more useful once you're up and running.
Use the Local Feed as your start-of-shift briefing
The Local Feed shows the most recent bulletins in your configured jurisdiction automatically — no searching required. Make it the first thing you check when you start a shift.
Keep your tags current
Authors can send bulletins to users whose tags match the bulletin — so only relevant users receive it. Tags are by crime type (homicide, fraud, missing persons, and more). The tags you selected during onboarding determine which tag-filtered bulletins reach you. If they don't reflect the crime types you actually work, you may miss bulletins that matter.
Let subscriptions watch your active cases for you
Set a subscription for a license plate, a physical description, or a case-relevant location. APBnet alerts you when a matching bulletin arrives — you don't have to keep checking manually.
Use Clutter Controls to reduce feed noise
If certain bulletin types rarely apply to your work, use Clutter Controls to keep them out of your main feed. They're still searchable — they just won't clutter your daily view.
Save bulletins from active cases
Tap the Save icon (bookmark) on any bulletin to add it to your Saved tab. When you're working a case and need to pull up a BOLO or missing person bulletin fast, it'll be there.
Map search when you need a specific area, not just your jurisdiction
Your Local Feed covers your configured jurisdiction. When you need bulletins from a specific block, neighboring county, or any other area, use map-based search — search, center, and zoom to the area you want.