To have FileThis collect documents from an online account, you need to create a “connection.” The connection tells FileThis where to go and how to login to your online account, whether it’s a bank, store, utility, TV service, or credit card account. The connection process is secure and the privacy of your login information is 100 percent protected.

Once you create a connection, FileThis continually collects information from the account, and then notifies you by email each time it fetches a new document. You will automatically have copies of all receipts for online purchases, payments made to your credit card company, and monthly bank statements, for example. Depending on the timing, you can use those notifications as reminders to pay your bills or review your account statements.

Tip: It’s important that you keep copies of all these statements in a secure location, so your account information is always at your fingertips—whether the company goes out of business, changes hands, or limits access to the last few months or year of statements. If your FileThis destination is your computer, be sure you are backing up your computer regularly.

Creating Connections

This process offers bank level security and your personal information is completely protected. To get started setting up connections to your online accounts:

1. Click the Connect tab at the top of the main FileThis window.

2. Find the company at right and click its icon. Use the Search field or narrow the choices by clicking Financial or Utilities as necessary.

Note: If one of your accounts is not listed, contact FileThis at support@filethis.com to request that the site be added.

3. In the lower-right corner, enter the login information you use when connecting to the account through the company’s website. (For example, if you’re setting up an Amazon connection, enter the User ID and Password you use to login to your account at www.amazon.com.)

4. Click Connect. FileThis will verify your credentials and access your account.

Once the new connection is established, FileThis collects all the documents currently available from the account website. The documents are automatically organized by connection in the destination you specified (such as your computer, Evernote, or DropBox). From this point on, FileThis will automatically fetch new statements for that online account. If the connection requires further validation or encounters a problem, see the next two sections.

Validating Connections

Some connections, especially those with financial institutions, often request additional information to validate the connection. These requests generally happen only when you create the connection, but sometimes they occur at random. If you’re connected to your FileThis account when a validation request occurs, answer the question that pops up and click Continue. Requests might include:

• Answer security questions: Answer one of the common security questions associated with that account (such as first car, favorite athlete, or maternal grandfather’s name).
• Select your state: Specify the state you’re in as required by some financial institutions.
• Confirm your identity: Select a method to receive an authentication code (such as email or text), then enter the code into FileThis.

Troubleshooting Connections

If FileThis has trouble connecting to one of your accounts and collecting documents—and you’re not logged in to your FileThis account—you will receive an email about the problem. (For example, this might happen if you change the password for your Amazon account at www.amazon.com, but don’t update the password in FileThis. Or, it might happen if FileThis is presented with additional security questions while fetching documents.)

To resolve the problem, connect to your FileThis account and click the Fix It icon.

Checking Connections Manually

FileThis monitors your accounts on a regular basis. If you want to manually fetch a newly created document—for example, for a purchase you just made—click the Check For New Documents button next to a connection in the Connections tab.