INFORMED CONSENT FOR SOUND OFF COUNSELING AND SUPPORT SERVICES

(COUNSELOR VERSION)

Effective Date: October 5, 2026

The Sound Off mobile application and any related customer portal (the “Application”) operated by Sound Off, Inc. (“Sound Off,” “we,” or “us”) provides a platform through which eligible users (“Users”) may access counseling and support services on an anonymous basis from licensed counselors (“Counselors”), as well as peer support services from trained peers (“Peer Supporters”).

The services made available through the Application are non-medical in nature and are intended to be short-term, supportive, psychoeducational, and preventative. The Application and Services do not provide medical care, psychotherapy, diagnosis, or treatment, and are not a substitute for in-person medical or behavioral healthcare.

The Application may also be made available from time to time to additional authorized populations designated by Sound Off, including military families, members of the United States intelligence community, first responders, or other populations.

Sound Off believes that the convenience and anonymity of this approach provide an important supplement to community-based and public service support resources for individuals experiencing stressors, challenges, or concerns. Through the Application, you may engage with a Counselor, without charge, to discuss your situation, explore coping strategies, and consider whether you may wish to seek additional in-person or professional services from unaffiliated providers.

This Informed Consent describes the counseling and support services you may receive through the Application using voice or internet-based communications when you consult with a Counselor.

Please read this carefully. By accepting this Informed Consent in the Application, (i) you acknowledge that you understand the services to be provided to you by the Counselor, and (ii) you consent to receive those services from a Counselor through the phone or internet on the terms described in this Informed Consent.

Benefits and Risks of Remote Counseling and Support Services

Remote counseling and support services refer to counseling interactions provided through voice or internet-based communications without in-person contact. These services differ from in-person medical or behavioral healthcare and may have unique benefits and limitations.

Because our Application is based upon providing consulting services to veterans and active service members or other authorized populations of Users in which you remain anonymous, we do not offer videoconferencing or other visual communication services.

Following are some of the benefits and risks with the Sound Off Program.

Benefits

Anonymous and Convenient. The principal benefit of the Sound Off Application and its dependence upon remote access through voice conferencing or telephone is that it provides a platform for you to confidentially and on an anonymous basis seek counseling and support services to explore stressors, challenges, or concerns that may be of significance to you, without (i) the necessity of setting or attending in-person appointments that might signal to your employers, family members or friends concerns that you have before you are prepared to discuss such concerns with them, and (ii) the expense of paying deductibles, co-payment obligations or other charges for such consulting services.
Remote Services. Another of the benefits of Sound Off’s Application is that you and the Counselor can engage in services without being in the same physical location. This can be helpful in providing continuity of access to support services if you or the Counselor moves to a different location, takes an extended vacation, or is otherwise geographically remote. It is also more convenient and takes less time.

Risks

Confidentiality. Because consulting sessions take place outside of a Counselor’s private office, there is potential for other people to overhear sessions if you are not in a private place during the session. It is important for you to make sure you find a private place for your session where you will not be interrupted. It is also important for you to protect the privacy of your session on your cell phone or other device. You should participate in a consulting session on the Application only while in a room or area where other people are not present and cannot overhear the conversation. The Counselor with whom you are connected and consult through the Application will take reasonable steps on his or her end to ensure your privacy.
Issues Related to Technology. There are many ways that technology issues might impact the services you receive through the Application. For example, participation in a consulting session facilitated by the Application requires technical competence on the part of both you and the Counselor to be helpful. In addition, technology may stop working during a session, other people might be able to get access to your private conversation, or stored data could be accessed by unauthorized people or companies.
Crisis Management and Intervention. If you currently or in the future are in a crisis situation requiring high levels of support and intervention, your Counselor will be limited in the kind of care that he or she can provide. Because of the constraints provided by your anonymity in terms of name and location, the Counselor will continue to provide helpful consulting advice and feedback but may also encourage you to seek any in-person treatment that it appears would be advisable. Before engaging in a consulting session, you and your Counselor will develop an emergency response plan to address potential crisis situations that may arise during your consultation with the Counselor. In particular, you may access the link to the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, 988 or text 838255 on the Sound Off Application at any time you think appropriate, including by interrupting a Sound Off consultation to do so.
However, notwithstanding any confidentiality obligations otherwise applicable to your participation in the consulting sessions, in the event that your Counselor does become aware of personally identifiable information and also becomes aware of a reasonably foreseeable harm to you or others in the course of your consultation, your Counselor may disclose information about you only to medical or law enforcement personnel and only if the Counselor determines that there is a probability of imminent physical injury by you to yourself or to others or there is a probability of immediate mental or emotional injury to you.
Efficacy of Consulting Sessions. Many therapists believe that something is lost by not being in the same room while providing treatment or consulting services to a patient or client. For example, there is debate about a therapist’s ability to fully understand and most effectively respond to non-verbal information when working remotely, particularly in a telephone-only setting.

Confidentiality

Counselors with whom you consult through the Application have a responsibility, consistent with their professional obligations and applicable law, to use reasonable efforts to protect the confidentiality of communications. However, neither Sound Off nor the Counselors can guarantee that any submissions, or the transactions conducted on or through the Application, are or will be totally secure. The nature of electronic communications technologies is such that Sound Off cannot guarantee that your communications will be kept confidential or that other people may not gain access to your communications. Sound Off intends to use updated encryption methods, firewalls, and back-up systems to help keep your information private, but there is always a risk that your electronic communications may be compromised, unsecured, or accessed by others. You should also take reasonable steps to ensure the security of your communications (for example, only using secure networks for remote counseling sessions and having passwords to protect the device you use for such sessions). You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your User Name and any other user identifier or other unique name or number assigned to you (collectively, your “User ID”) and any password used in connection with your use of the Application. You are fully responsible for all access and any activity that occurs through use of your User ID or password. Sound Off is not and will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from any unauthorized access or use of your User ID or password. See also Sound Off’s “Privacy Policy” contained on the Application. Should you choose to disclose or inadvertently disclose identifying information in the text, please use the “clear history” function of the text exchange.

Records

Your sessions through the Application are not recorded by Sound Off. A Counselor may maintain limited documentation related to your session in accordance with the Counselor’s independent professional requirements. Such documentation is not maintained by Sound Off and does not constitute medical records created or stored by the Company.

Understanding and Consent

I understand that neither Sound Off nor the Counselor has made or is making any representation that the support and services I receive through the Application are comparable to the support or services I may receive in a face-to-face or in-patient relationship with a licensed mental health professional. I acknowledge that services made available through the Application are non-medical in nature, are not medical care, psychotherapy, diagnosis, or treatment, and are intended to be short-term, supportive, psychoeducational, and preventative, consistent with non-medical counseling models recognized by the U.S. Department of Defense. I further understand that if I am struggling and am open to pursuing such an in-person relationship, my Counselor will do everything possible to assist me in doing so.

I acknowledge and agree that neither Sound Off nor Counselor has made any warranty or guaranty of a successful outcome or resolution of my concerns through the counseling and support services available through the Application, just as no such warranty or guaranty of a successful outcome or resolution of your concerns could be provided by a mental health licensed professional providing in-person services or treatment.

I understand that I may need certain computer or cell phone systems to use the consulting services accessible through the Sound Off Application. I further understand that I am solely responsible for any costs related to the purchase or lease of any necessary equipment, accessories, or software to take part in such consulting sessions.

Your Counselor may not regularly check his or her Application, email or texts, nor respond immediately, so the Application should not be used if you are experiencing a crisis or an emergency. If you are unable to reach your Counselor and feel that you cannot wait for him or her to return your call, you should contact your family physician or the nearest emergency room and ask for the psychologist or psychiatrist on call, or please contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, 988 or text 838255.

If the session is interrupted for any reason, such as the technological connection fails, and you are having an emergency, do not call Sound Off or your Counselor back; instead, call 911, or please contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, 988 or text 838255, or go to your nearest emergency room.