Admin Guide
Getting Started
This guide walks an organisation administrator through the complete setup process from creating a SemaFore organisation to having the first team member exchange encrypted messages.
Before you begin
You will need:
- A mobile phone number capable of receiving SMS
- A modern browser (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or Edge)
- At least one colleague to invite for the test
SemaFore is a business messaging platform. Organisation administrators manage the team from a web portal; end users communicate via the iOS or Android app. These are separate products — this guide covers the portal side. For the mobile app, see iOS Getting Started or Android Getting Started.
Step 1 — Create your organisation
Go to portal.semafore.io/signup.
Enter your phone number. This becomes your administrator account. SemaFore uses phone-number authentication — there is no username or password.
Enter the OTP code. You will receive a six-digit code by SMS within a few seconds. Enter it in the confirmation field.
Enter your organisation name and display name. Your organisation name becomes your organisation’s identifier on the platform. Choose something recognisable — your company name or team name works well. Your display name is how you appear to other members.
Click Create organisation. Your organisation is created and you are signed in to the portal.
Step 2 — Understand the dashboard
After sign-in you land on the portal dashboard. The left-hand navigation has four main sections:
| Section | What it does |
|---|---|
| Members | Invite users and approve device registrations |
| Groups | Create group threads for sub-teams |
| Broadcasts | Send a message to all approved members simultaneously |
| Audit Log | Platform event history — logins, device registrations, group changes |
The topbar shows your organisation name and the E2E Encrypted status indicator. This confirms that the portal is connected to a server that enforces end-to-end encryption on all message delivery.
Step 3 — Invite your first user
Go to Members in the left navigation.
Click Invite member. Enter the phone number of the person you want to invite. They will receive an SMS directing them to download the SemaFore app and sign in with that phone number.
The member appears in the Members list with status Pending until they download the app, sign in, and register their device.
Step 4 — Wait for device registration
When your invited member downloads the SemaFore app, signs in with their phone number via OTP, and opens the app for the first time, their device registers automatically. You will see their status change to Registered in the Members list.
At this point their account is registered but not yet approved. They cannot send or receive messages until you approve them.
Step 5 — Approve the member
In the Members list, find the registered user and click Approve. Their status changes to Active.
They can now exchange encrypted messages with other approved members of your organisation.
Step 6 — Send a test message
Ask your newly approved member to open the SemaFore app and send you a message.
You will not see the message in the portal — the portal does not display message content. Message content is encrypted on the sender’s device before transmission. Attomus, and anyone operating the SemaFore server, has no mechanism to read it. The portal audit log records that a message was sent (timestamp, sender, recipient count) but never the content.
If you want to exchange messages yourself, download the SemaFore app on your phone, sign in with your administrator phone number, and your device will register in the portal. You can then approve your own device and join the messaging environment.
What comes next
- User Management — how to add more members, change roles, and revoke access
- Groups — create sub-team threads
- Broadcasts — send a message to all members at once
- Audit Logs — review platform events for compliance and governance