> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.intelligenceonchain.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.intelligenceonchain.com/spectra-the-in-browser-detective/the-ioc-token.md).

# Get Access With the IOC Token

IOC is an **access token**. Holding a qualifying balance in your wallet unlocks Spectra without a monthly subscription — the platform reads your balance when you sign in and grants access on that basis.

That is the whole mechanism. You are not staking, locking, depositing or transferring anything to us. The tokens stay in your wallet and remain yours to move at any time.

{% hint style="info" %}
**IOC is not required to use Spectra.** Card subscriptions are available at every tier and are the right choice for many users — see [Which route suits you](#which-route-suits-you) below.
{% endhint %}

***

## Contents

1. [What holding IOC unlocks](#what-holding-ioc-unlocks)
2. [How verification works](#how-verification-works)
3. [Getting set up](#getting-set-up)
4. [Which route suits you](#which-route-suits-you)
5. [What IOC does not do](#what-ioc-does-not-do)
6. [Token details](#token-details)
7. [FAQ](#faq)

***

## What holding IOC unlocks

**Spectra platform access.** The full investigation toolkit, without a recurring card charge.

**No monthly billing cycle.** Access persists while your balance qualifies, rather than expiring on a renewal date.

**Community channels.** Holder access to the Intelligence On Chain Discord and Telegram.

{% hint style="warning" %}
**Threshold and entitlements can change.** The qualifying balance and what it unlocks are set by Intelligence On Chain and may be revised. Current values are always shown in the app at sign-in — treat those as authoritative over any figure written here.
{% endhint %}

***

## How verification works

The check is deliberately simple, and understanding it prevents most support questions.

{% stepper %}
{% step %}

### You connect a wallet

Sign in to Spectra with the wallet that holds your IOC balance. Signing is a signature request — it proves you control the address. It is **not** a transaction, costs no gas, and grants no permission to move anything.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Spectra reads your balance

A read-only call against the token contract at your address. Nothing is written to the chain.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Access is granted for the session

If the balance meets the threshold, the platform unlocks. Your tokens never leave your wallet at any point.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### The check repeats on each sign-in

Because it is evaluated at sign-in, moving tokens out mid-session will not revoke access immediately — but the next sign-in will fail. Equally, acquiring tokens during a session does not grant access until you sign in again.
{% endstep %}
{% endstepper %}

{% hint style="danger" %}
**Intelligence On Chain will never ask you to send tokens to a wallet to gain access.** There is no deposit address, no "verification transfer", and no staking contract. Anyone asking you to send IOC anywhere to unlock the platform is attempting to steal from you.
{% endhint %}

***

## Getting set up

{% stepper %}
{% step %}

### Acquire IOC

IOC trades on `Uniswap` on `Ethereum`.

**Verify the contract address** against the official source before swapping. Token impersonation is routine, and a search result is not a source. The canonical address is published at [intelligenceonchain.com](https://intelligenceonchain.com).
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Hold it in the wallet you will sign in with

This is the most common setup mistake. The balance must be in the *same address* you connect with — not a linked account, not an exchange account, not a different wallet in the same seed phrase.

Tokens held on a centralised exchange **cannot** be verified, because the address is the exchange's, not yours. Withdraw to a self-custody wallet first.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Sign in at Spectra

Go to [spectra.intelligenceonchain.com](https://spectra.intelligenceonchain.com), connect, and sign the message. Access resolves immediately.
{% endstep %}
{% endstepper %}

***

## Which route suits you

There is a straight answer here rather than a sales one, because the wrong choice causes real friction.

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="Subscription is likely better if…" %}
**You are buying through an organisation.** Most law enforcement bodies, regulated firms and newsrooms cannot hold crypto assets under their own procurement or compliance rules. A card subscription produces an invoice and a receipt; a token holding produces a balance sheet question.

**You need predictable cost.** A subscription is a fixed monthly figure. A token balance has a market price that moves.

**You want to try Spectra before committing.** A month of Basic is a smaller and more reversible decision than acquiring a token position.

**You use Spectra occasionally.** For a handful of investigations a year, a subscription in the months you need it is likely cheaper.
{% endtab %}

{% tab title="IOC is likely better if…" %}
**You use Spectra continuously.** Sustained use with no recurring charge is the case the mechanism exists for.

**You are an independent investigator or researcher.** No procurement chain to satisfy, no card required, no renewal to remember.

**You already hold IOC.** If you hold it for other reasons, the access is already yours — there is nothing further to do.

**You want to avoid a subscription relationship.** Some users prefer not to have a recurring charge or stored card details.
{% endtab %}
{% endtabs %}

### Side by side

|                                  | Subscription    | IOC token                       |
| -------------------------------- | --------------- | ------------------------------- |
| Cost profile                     | Fixed monthly   | One acquisition, market-priced  |
| Recurring charge                 | Yes             | No                              |
| Invoice / receipt                | Yes             | No                              |
| Suits organisational procurement | Usually         | Rarely                          |
| Value of the asset               | n/a             | Can fall as well as rise        |
| Reversible                       | Cancel any time | Sell, at whatever the market is |
| Setup                            | Card details    | Self-custody wallet required    |

***

## What IOC does not do

Stating this plainly is more useful than leaving it implied.

**It is not an investment product.** IOC exists to gate access to software. Nothing about holding it constitutes a share in Intelligence On Chain, a claim on revenue, or a right to any distribution.

**It pays no yield.** There is no staking, no rewards programme, and no return generated by holding it.

**It carries no price commitment.** The value of a traded token can fall as well as rise, and can fall to nothing. Intelligence On Chain makes no representation about future value and does not manage the market for it.

**It is not required.** Every Spectra tier is available by subscription. The token is an alternative route, not a toll gate.

**It does not confer governance.** Holding IOC does not carry voting rights over the platform or the company.

{% hint style="warning" %}
Nothing on this page is financial advice. Whether acquiring a token is appropriate for you depends on your circumstances, your jurisdiction and — if you are buying on behalf of an organisation — your own compliance rules. If you are unsure, use the subscription.
{% endhint %}

***

## Token details

<table><thead><tr><th width="197.42333984375"></th><th></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Name</strong></td><td>Intelligence On Chain</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Symbol</strong></td><td>IOC</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Chain</strong></td><td><code>Ethereum</code></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Contract</strong></td><td><pre><code>0xeD1DdC491A2c8b1f7D6e8933580a47E124EA38db
</code></pre></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Decimals</strong></td><td><code>18</code></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Access threshold</strong></td><td>Shown in-app at sign-in</td></tr></tbody></table>

{% hint style="danger" %}
**Verify the contract address before every purchase.** Copy it from this page or from [intelligenceonchain.com](https://intelligenceonchain.com), never from a search result, a direct message, or a social post — including one that appears to be from us. Impersonation tokens using the same name and symbol are trivial to deploy and are deployed constantly.
{% endhint %}

***

## FAQ

<details>

<summary>Do I have to send my tokens anywhere?</summary>

No, and you should treat any request to do so as an attempt to steal from you. Access is granted by reading your balance. There is no deposit address, no staking contract and no lock-up. Your tokens never move.

</details>

<details>

<summary>What happens if the price moves and my balance falls below the threshold?</summary>

The threshold is a **token quantity**, not a fiat value, so ordinary price movement does not affect your access. Selling part of your holding does.

If Intelligence On Chain revises the threshold itself, the current figure is always the one shown in-app.

</details>

<details>

<summary>Can I hold IOC on an exchange?</summary>

Not for access purposes. Tokens held on a centralised exchange sit at the exchange's address, not yours, so there is nothing to verify against a wallet you control. Withdraw to a self-custody wallet.

</details>

<details>

<summary>I sold my tokens. What happens to my cases?</summary>

Access ends at your next sign-in. Anything you exported is on your own disk and unaffected — which is a good argument for exporting as you work rather than treating the platform as storage. See [Exporting and case management](https://github.com/JPonChain/Spectra-Documentation/tree/main/spectra-complete-guide.md#exporting-and-case-management).

</details>

<details>

<summary>Can I use both a subscription and IOC?</summary>

There is no benefit to it. They are alternative routes to the same access, and holding both does not stack.

</details>

<details>

<summary>Does holding more than the threshold unlock more?</summary>

Entitlements by balance are set by Intelligence On Chain and shown in-app. Do not assume a larger holding grants more than the current published entitlements state.

</details>

<details>

<summary>My balance qualifies but access is not working</summary>

Work through these in order:

1. **Wrong wallet.** Confirm the connected address is the one holding the balance — not another account in the same seed phrase.
2. **Wrong chain.** Confirm your wallet is on `{{CHAIN}}`.
3. **Wrong token.** Confirm the token in your wallet matches the contract address in [Token details](#token-details). An impersonation token will show the right symbol and fail verification.
4. **Stale session.** Sign out and back in — the check runs at sign-in.

If all four are correct, contact us with your wallet address and the approximate time you tried.

</details>

***

## Where to go next

* [**Spectra — Complete Guide**](https://github.com/JPonChain/Spectra-Documentation/tree/main/spectra-complete-guide.md) — what the platform actually does
* [**Open Spectra**](https://spectra.intelligenceonchain.com) — sign in and verify
* [**Intelligence On Chain**](https://intelligenceonchain.com) — canonical contract address and official links