In This Guide
This guide is intended for complaint intake administrators. It describes how to configure and use the Email Hotline Complaint Intake feature in eCASE Investigations. This feature enables the system to automatically create a hotline complaint case whenever an email is received at a designated Microsoft 365 intake address, eliminating the need for manual case creation from email submissions.
The configuration is completed in three parts:
Email Reader Connector: Configure the Microsoft 365 mailbox connection under Settings >> Connector.
Investigation Configuration: Set default case assignment and folder ownership under Main Menu >> Configuration >> Investigation >> Configuration.
Complaint Configuration: Add the email complaint method and configure PDF attachment settings under Main Menu >> Configuration >> Investigation >> Complaint Configuration.
Prerequisites
The following prerequisites must be met before beginning configuration:
A dedicated Microsoft 365 mailbox must exist and be designated as the complaint intake address.
An Azure AD application must be registered with access to the intake mailbox. The following values are required from the Azure AD application registration:
App Key (Application Client ID)
App Secret (Client Secret Value)
Tenant ID (Directory Tenant ID)
The Azure AD application must have the appropriate Microsoft Graph API permissions to read mailbox messages (e.g., Mail.Read application permission).
This configuration must be performed by a system administrator with access to both the Azure Portal and eCASE Investigations administration settings.
Configure the Email Reader Connector
The Email Reader connector establishes the connection between eCASE Investigations and the designated Microsoft 365 intake mailbox. Follow the steps below to configure it:
Navigate to Settings >> Connector. The Connector list page appears.
Locate the Email Reader listing. The description reads Email Reader Configuration. By default, the status is Disabled.
Click Email Reader to open the configuration form.
Complete the following fields as all the fields are mandatory.
Field | Description |
|---|---|
Enable/Disable Email Complaint Intake | Toggle to enable or disable the automatic email complaint intake. Set to Enabled to activate. |
Source Type | Dropdown — select Microsoft. This is the default and currently the only supported option. |
Intake Email Address | Enter the full email address of the designated Microsoft 365 mailbox (e.g., hotline-intake@agency.gov). |
App Key | Enter the Application (Client) ID from the Azure AD app registration. |
App Secret | Enter the Client Secret Value from the Azure AD app registration. |
Tenant ID | Enter the Directory (Tenant) ID from the Azure AD app registration. |
Click Save to apply the configuration.
NOTE: Once the configuration is saved with the toggle set to Enabled, the Email Hotline Case Fetch Scheduler job is automatically activated in the Job Scheduler. See the Monitor the Job Scheduler section for details.
NOTE: All six fields are mandatory. The form cannot be saved if any field is left blank.
Configure Investigation Settings
The Investigation Configuration page contains settings that control default assignment and folder ownership for cases created from email. Follow the steps below:
Navigate to Main Menu >> Configuration >> Investigation >> Configuration. The Investigation Configuration page appears.
Locate the Email Hotline Configuration section.
Set the Email Case Default Assignment field: Select the default office or assignment for email-created complaint cases from the dropdown. If this field is left unconfigured, the system automatically assigns the office (the same default behavior as the Portal intake configuration).
Set the Email Hotline Complaint Folder Owner field: Select the default folder owner from the dropdown. If this field is left unconfigured, the system assigns a system user as the default owner (the same default behavior as the Portal intake configuration).
Click Save to apply the settings.
Configure Complaint Settings
Two settings within Complaint Configuration must be reviewed before the feature is active: the Complaint Method and the Email Case PDF Settings.
Complaint Method
A dedicated complaint method must be added to identify cases that originate from email intake. Follow the steps below:
Navigate to Main Menu >> Configuration >> Investigation >> Complaint Configuration. The Complaint Configuration page appears.
Locate the Complaint Method list.
Add the following value if it does not already exist: HL – Email Complaint.
Save the configuration.
NOTE: The HL – Email Complaint method is automatically selected on every case created from an inbound email. No manual selection is required during case creation.
Email Case PDF Settings
The Email Case PDF Settings control how attachments from inbound emails are stored in the resulting complaint case.
On the Complaint Configuration page, locate the Email Case PDF Settings section.
Configure the following fields:
Field | Description |
|---|---|
Email Attachment Type | Select the attachment type from the dropdown. Values are sourced from the system Attachment Type list. |
Document Type | Select the document type from the dropdown. Values are sourced from the system Document Type list. |
Email Attachment Name | Enter a name for the stored attachment. This field includes text validation. |
Click Save to apply the settings.
Monitor the Job Scheduler
Once the Email Reader connector is enabled, the system automatically creates and activates a scheduled job to continuously fetch and process inbound emails. Administrators can monitor this job from the Job Scheduler.
Property | Value |
|---|---|
Name | Email Hotline Case Fetch Scheduler |
Description | Automates fetching and processing emails into complaint cases. |
Active Status | Yes when the Email Reader configuration is Enabled; No when it is Disabled. |
Is System Job | Yes |
Last Run Date/Time | Displays the date and time the job last executed. |
Next Run Date/Time | Displays the date and time the job is next scheduled to run. |
The standard job actions are available: Save, View Job Log, and Clear Job Log.
NOTE: The Active Status of this job is directly tied to the Enable/Disable toggle in the Email Reader connector. Disabling the connector automatically sets the job's Active Status to No.
Automatic Case Creation
Once configuration is complete, eCASE Investigations automatically creates a hotline complaint case for each new email received at the intake address. The following table describes how the system populates each field in the newly created case:
Case Field | Populated Value |
|---|---|
Title | Subject line of the inbound email. |
Case Summary | Body content of the inbound email. |
Date Allegation Received | Date the email was received. |
Date Initiated | Same as Date Allegation Received. |
Date Due | Automatically set to one (1) month from the date the email was received. |
Complaint Method | HL – Email Complaint (auto-selected). |
Case Type | Complaint. |
Complaint Source | Anonymous. Email intake does not capture a named complainant — only the sender's email address is recorded. |
Initiating Office | As configured in Email Case Default Assignment (Investigation Configuration). |
Complainant Email | The sender's email address. |
Folder Owner | As configured in Email Hotline Complaint Folder Owner (Investigation Configuration). |
NOTE: Thread emails (replies or forwards within an existing email thread) do not generate new complaint cases. Only the original inbound email triggers case creation.
Once a case is created from email, all standard complaint case functionality applies without modification. Email-created cases are fully available in search and filter operations alongside manually created cases. Workflow progression, attachments, and all other case management features remain unchanged.
Metadata and Attachments
For every email processed by the scheduler, eCASE Investigations automatically generates and attaches the following to the complaint case:
Metadata File (.txt): A text file is generated containing the following information from the inbound email:
Sender's email address
Email subject
Email body
Date and time the email was received
Email Attachments: Any attachments included in the inbound email are stored in the case. The attachment type, document type, and attachment name are applied according to the Email Case PDF Settings configured in the Complaint Configuration page.