The Method
How Remain Faithful Works
A complete accountability system built on peer trust, on-device privacy, and the covenant model. Here is exactly what happens under the hood.
The Accountability Model
Lasting change in purity requires three things: vulnerability, consistent visibility, and a community of trust. Most accountability fails because it operates on the honor system: you report what you choose to report, when you choose to report it.
Remain Faithful creates a consistent, automatic signal that removes the decision to disclose. When your device flags something, your partners know, regardless of whether you would have told them. This isn't surveillance. It's the covenant made real.
The app is a tool, not a replacement for relationship. Alerts are conversation starters, not verdicts.
Vulnerability
Inviting partners to see you clearly requires honest agreement to the covenant upfront.
Consistent Visibility
Automatic alerts remove the shame barrier of self-disclosure without removing personal responsibility.
Community of Trust
Partners accept terms before gaining any access. Relationships must exist before accountability can work.
One-to-One or Group Accountability
RF supports both models. Choose what fits your relationships and community structure.
One-to-One Partnership
- Maximum privacy between two people
- Deep, focused relationship built on mutual trust
- Ideal for close friends, mentors, or spouses
- Each partner can monitor the other (reciprocal) or one direction
Small Group
- Up to 12 members in a single group
- Ideal for men's ministry, discipleship cohorts, or Bible study groups
- All members receive alerts when any member is flagged
- Group admin manages membership and invite codes
How Monitoring Works
Two complementary layers — always-on app and web monitoring, plus optional deep screen analysis — each sending discreet alerts to your partners.
Screen Time Framework Runs Persistently
Apple's Screen Time and DeviceActivity APIs watch app usage and web categories continuously in the background. This layer requires no screen broadcast permission, survives device restarts without any manual re-enabling, and cannot be bypassed by force-quitting the app.
App & Web Category Alert Generated
When a problematic app is opened or an adult-category site is visited, an alert is created immediately. The only data captured is which app, the category, and the timestamp — no screen content, no page content, ever.
You Start the Session
Deep Scan is never automatic. You start it intentionally when you want stronger scrutiny — a high-risk period, a travel trip, or a season of struggle. iOS asks for explicit screen broadcast permission each time. You are always in control.
On-Device AI Analyzes Screen Frames
A sandboxed ReplayKit broadcast extension captures screen frames. Each frame is analyzed by Apple Vision (OCR), SensitiveContentAnalysis (Apple's nudity detector), and a local keyword classifier — all running on your device's Neural Engine. Classification is entirely on-device. Frames are never stored or transmitted.
Deep Scan cannot analyze DRM-protected streaming video (Netflix, Disney+, etc.). It monitors browsers, photos, social media, and most non-DRM apps.
Alert Delivered to Partners (Both Layers)
When either layer flags something, you receive a notification first. Then a push notification goes to each partner containing only: the alert category, severity level, a brief system-generated description, and timestamp. Partners see nothing beyond those data points — no screenshots, no raw content, ever.
The Foundation
The Covenant Model
Before any partner gains access to your account, they must agree to a covenant. This isn't a terms-of-service checkbox. It's a statement of intent that frames the entire relationship. Read more about the covenant model.
You also agree to it on your end. Accountability is bilateral. The covenant frames both the monitoring and the response to it.
The Covenant
- ✦I will be honest with my partner, even when it is difficult.
- ✦I will not use this app to condemn my partner.
- ✦I will respond to alerts with grace and genuine care.
- ✦I will not share my partner's alerts with others.
- ✦I will pursue my partner's flourishing above my own curiosity.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, always. Remain Faithful has no subscription tier, no premium features, and no advertising. The app is sustained by voluntary donations from users who find it valuable. We have committed to this model indefinitely.
Your chosen accountability partners can see alert metadata: the timestamp, the category (e.g., "adult content"), and the severity level. They do not see screenshots, browsing history, app content, or raw OCR text. None of that data is ever transmitted off your device.
You choose your display name when you create your account. However, accountability by design requires that your partners know who they are holding accountable. Anonymity defeats the purpose. Your partners see the name you provide, typically your real name.
Remain Faithful uses two monitoring layers. Layer A — always-on Screen Time monitoring — watches which apps you open and which web categories you visit. It runs persistently in the background, requires no screen broadcast permission, and survives device restarts. Layer B — Deep Scan — is started intentionally for high-risk periods and uses Apple's ReplayKit to run on-device AI (Vision OCR, SensitiveContentAnalysis) on screen frames. All classification is on-device. Deep Scan cannot analyze DRM-protected streaming video such as Netflix or Disney+; it covers browsers, photos, social media, and most non-DRM apps.
Navigate to Settings → Groups → select the group → Leave Group. When you leave a group, all group members are notified. Your data is not retained after leaving. Partners will no longer receive alerts from you. Your historical alerts within the group are purged per your data retention setting (default 30 days).
Not yet. The current app requires iOS 17 or later due to its reliance on Apple-specific frameworks (ReplayKit, Vision, SensitiveContentAnalysis). Android support is planned for late 2026 or early 2027 but is not yet available.
The broadcast extension is part of Deep Scan (Layer B) — the optional, user-initiated mode. iOS's ReplayKit allows a sandboxed extension process to capture screen frames. The extension runs AI analysis entirely on-device and, when something is flagged, uploads only alert metadata (category, severity, summary, and timestamp) — never the screen frame itself. Screen content, OCR text, and screenshots are never transmitted. The always-on Layer A monitoring does not use a broadcast extension — it uses Apple's Screen Time framework instead.
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