Frequently asked questions

echoBOS is a communication and organisation platform for BOS organisations, i.e. authorities and organisations with public safety tasks (in German: Behörden und Organisationen mit Sicherheitsaufgaben). Events with responses, reservations, defect reports, polls, deadlines, chat, file storage and an audit trail come together in one app for iPhone and Android and in a web application. Your organisation’s data is stored on servers in Germany.

For every organisation that plans duties, drills and training around its emergency operations: volunteer fire brigades, professional and industrial fire brigades, local branches of the THW (Federal Agency for Technical Relief), aid organisations such as the German Red Cross (DRK), ASB, Johanniter and Malteser, the water rescue services of the DLRG (German Life Saving Association) and the Wasserwacht, the Bergwacht (mountain rescue), emergency medical services and civil protection units. Whether you have 20 or 500 members, you set up departments, platoons and groups to match the way your organisation is structured.

No. echoBOS is not an alerting system. It organises everyday life between call-outs: duties and drills, equipment, defects, deadlines and coordination within the team. Alerting continues to run through the systems your organisation uses for it.

As an app on the iPhone and on Android smartphones, and as a web application in the browser with no installation at all. The app and the web application work with the same data and stay in sync.

The app and the web application are in German. This website is additionally available in English, Italian and French.

Yes. You plan drills and meetings with RSVPs, reserve vehicles and equipment in the calendar, and your firefighters report defects directly at the vehicle, with a photo. You keep track of deadlines such as driving licences, safety briefings or the G 26.3 (respiratory protection medical), and you set up local fire companies or departments as units of their own.

Yes. Here the focus is on staff meetings, further training and company drills, along with managing vehicles and equipment and defect reports with clear responsibilities. The audit trail keeps a traceable record of who changed what and when.

Yes. You coordinate training sessions with responses, reserve equipment and vehicles in the calendar, and set up platoons, specialist groups and squads as departments and groups. That way, every piece of information reaches exactly the volunteers it is meant for.

Yes. You plan regular unit evenings, first aid cover at public events and further training with RSVPs. You reserve vehicles, equipment and rooms in the calendar, keep track of expiry dates for training or driving licences as deadlines, and turn local units or specialist services into groups of their own, each with its own chat if you wish.

Yes. You plan lifeguard duties and training dates with responses, and manage boats, vehicles and rescue equipment with reservations and defect reports. You record expiry dates such as lifeguard badges or boat licences as deadlines, and echoBOS reminds members of them in good time.

Yes. You plan training and standby duties with RSVPs, manage gear and vehicles with reservations and defect reports, and keep track of course expiry dates as deadlines. Especially when members live far apart, the chat keeps everyone on the same page.

For the organisational side of the service: staff meetings, further training and resource planning are handled centrally, defects in vehicles and equipment are reported with a priority and followed up, and you keep track of expiry dates for training or driving licences. Patient data does not belong in echoBOS – it is not an incident documentation system.

Yes. For civil protection units and rapid response groups (SEG), echoBOS brings drill planning, equipment and communication together in one place. Departments and groups reflect the structure of the unit, and every piece of information reaches exactly the members it is meant for.

Yes. echoBOS is not tailored to one type of organisation. Whether you are a rescue dog team, a psychosocial emergency care team or a specialist group, events, responses, equipment, deadlines and chat work for small units just as well as for large associations.

You create drills, training sessions, meetings and other events for the whole organisation or specifically for departments and groups. Members accept, decline or answer “maybe” in the app, and a response deadline with an automatic reminder helps everyone keep track. Recurring events are created from templates, and every event can have its own chat.

Yes. In the web application, administrators download an Excel template, enter the events and import them all in one go. Before the import, echoBOS shows a preview with every error it has detected, and an import can be undone within a set period.

In the reservation calendar, authorised members see at a glance what is booked and when. Requests are approved or rejected by people with approval rights, and you can exclude vehicles that are not meant to be lent out from reservations.

Members report defects in vehicles, equipment, personal protective equipment, buildings or communications technology directly in the app – with a photo, category and priority. The people responsible work through the report in a fixed workflow until it is resolved, you clarify questions directly on the defect, and the history remains traceable.

For expiry dates that should not be missed – such as driving licences, safety briefings or the G 26.3. Every member sees their own deadlines and is reminded in good time by push notification, while the administration keeps the overview in the web application. Only the name and the date are stored; findings, diagnoses or certificates do not belong in echoBOS, and echoBOS makes no decision about anyone’s fitness.

Direct messages, group chats and chats for departments, groups and events – with images, videos, documents, voice messages, polls, @mentions and read receipts. Messages are stored on servers in Germany, and official communication stays separate from private messengers.

Yes. You create polls and date polls with single or multiple choice, anonymous if you wish and targeted at specific groups. In the file storage, you keep documents in folders and decide whether they are visible to the whole organisation or only to individual departments and groups.

Yes. Departments represent the units of your organisation, and groups represent teams such as breathing apparatus wearers, pump operators or specialist groups. Members can belong to several units, and for each unit you can appoint people in charge who are allowed to assign, invite or create members – in each case only as far as you specify.

No. echoBOS is made up of modules that are switched on per organisation. Anything you do not need stays hidden from your members.

echoBOS stores events, messages, files and member data exclusively on its own infrastructure in German data centres. It is operated by Strecker Digital GmbH, based in Crailsheim, Germany.

No. In the database, every organisation is strictly separated from all others. Within your organisation, each member only sees what is intended for their departments, groups and permissions.

Administrators manage members, structure and settings. Beyond that, you grant specific permissions, for example to create events, approve reservations, handle defects or start chats. That way, everyone gets exactly the options their role requires.

Administrators can enforce for the whole organisation that the app can only be opened with Face ID or a fingerprint; echoBOS does not store any biometric data in the process. In addition, signing in to the app is tied to the individual device: a new invitation code disconnects the account’s previous devices.

Only a neutral notice such as “New notification: Chat”. Names, message texts and the titles of events or defect reports are not included; they can only be seen in the app itself. This matters because, technically, push notifications are always delivered via Apple or Google.

No. There is no advertising and there are no tracking services in the app or in the web application.

WhatsApp belongs to Meta, which is based in the USA; it is subject to the CLOUD Act and analyses metadata. On top of that, private and official communication get mixed up, and older information is hard to find again. In echoBOS, your organisation invites the members, the chats follow your structure, the data is stored in Germany, and events, equipment and deadlines are included as well.

With “Start free trial”, you set up a trial account for your organisation in just a few minutes. Once you have confirmed your email address, it is available for 30 days with all features – free of charge, with no obligation and no credit card.

Administrators create the members and give each of them a personal invitation code, by email if you wish. Members use this code to sign in to the app; there is no public registration. That way, your organisation remains a closed group.

Yes. In the web application, administrators download an Excel template, enter the members together with their departments and groups, and import them all in one go. The import only creates new accounts; existing members remain unchanged.

Administrators manage members, departments and groups, vehicles and equipment, deadlines and settings conveniently in the web application on a computer. Day to day, members use the app – or the browser as well.

Our support team can be reached by email and phone and is included in the price. In addition, a detailed user manual (in German) explains every feature step by step.

The price depends on the size and needs of your organisation. You can request a non-binding quote via the pricing page; we will get back to you within 24 hours.

No. echoBOS is billed monthly and can be cancelled at any time.

The app and the web application, all updates and support – with no hidden costs.

No. The trial account is free of charge and without obligation. You only take out a subscription if you want to keep using echoBOS afterwards.