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Safe Harbor connects you to real help — shelters, crisis hotlines, legal aid, and support services — specific to your state. No judgment. No barriers. Just the information you need, right now.
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National Resources
Available to women across all 50 states, 24 hours a day.
Choose Your State
Select your state to see local shelters, hotlines, and legal aid.
Identity Safety
Protecting your SSN, credit, and location when your abuser knows how to find you.
Many survivors cannot safely use their Social Security number — because an abuser with access to financial systems, government databases, or hacking skills can use it to locate them. This section tells you every legal tool available to protect your identity and still access housing, credit, and financial services.
A credit freeze is free and permanent until you lift it. It stops anyone — including a stalker — from opening new accounts, pulling your credit report, or using your SSN to get loans in your name. It does NOT affect your existing accounts or credit score.
The SSA allows you to add a Self Lock to your Social Security record through their myE-Verify system. This blocks anyone from using your SSN to verify employment — which is one way an abuser or their associates can track your location through new job filings.
🔒 Set Up SSA Self LockAll 50 states have an ACP. It gives you a substitute P.O. Box address that you can legally use for government records, mail, leases, and official documents. Your real address stays sealed. Landlords, employers, and agencies accept the ACP address as your legal address of record.
✓ Driver's license (in most states)
✓ Lease agreements and rental applications
✓ Bank and financial accounts
✓ School enrollment for children
✓ Government benefits and mail
The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) gives you federal housing rights that many survivors don't know about:
If your abuser has already misused your credit or opened accounts in your name, you can place an Extended Fraud Alert on your file. This lasts 7 years and requires any lender to contact you directly before opening new accounts — even if someone has your SSN.
There is currently no federal law requiring landlords or credit bureaus to accept an alternative identifier for survivors who cannot safely use their SSN. Safe Harbor is actively advocating for a Survivor Protection Identifier — a policy that would let verified DV survivors access housing and credit without exposing their location.
If this has affected you, your voice matters. Contact the CFPB at consumerfinance.gov/complaint and share your experience — every complaint builds the case for change.
Resources for Men
You are not alone. Abuse has no gender. Help is here.
1 in 9 men experience severe intimate partner violence. Male survivors often face disbelief, stigma, and a system not built for them. You deserve to be believed. You deserve help. And it exists — right here.
LGBTQ+ Resources
Abuse happens in every relationship. Specialized support exists for you.
LGBTQ+ survivors face unique barriers — fear of outing, shelters that aren't affirming, and the myth that abuse "doesn't happen" in same-sex relationships. It does. And you deserve support that sees and affirms your full identity.
Your Safety Plan
A safety plan is the difference between a plan and an escape. Check items off as you complete them.
73% of DV homicides happen when the survivor is leaving or just after. A safety plan dramatically reduces this risk. Don't leave without one.
Am I Being Abused?
Answer honestly. This is private — nothing is stored or sent anywhere.