Privacy & data use
Cambridge Rat Watch is an independent, unofficial neighborhood project. It is not operated by the City of Cambridge.
What a Rat Watch report contains
A report may include the date and time of a sighting, rat count, observed activity and nearby conditions, a neighborhood label, exact coordinates, how the location was placed, browser-reported GPS accuracy, an optional City SeeClickFix ticket ID, an optional note, and an optional photo. GPS accuracy is retained only when the contributor chooses device location. Photos are resized and re-encoded in the browser to remove embedded EXIF location data.
Who can see exact locations
Exact Rat Watch coordinates, notes, and GPS accuracy are stored in the project's Supabase database and can be accessed by project maintainers through a protected export. Public Rat Watch map pins are rounded. Cambridge Rat Watch's form submits a separate SeeClickFix request by default when its City 311 checkbox is selected. That request includes the exact coordinates, sighting date, time, count, activity, nearby conditions, and optional note. Uncheck the box to keep a report only in Rat Watch. The form does not send a photo, name, email, or phone number to the City. City requests may be public and may include a street address derived from the coordinates.
Separate City 311 layer
The map can also display public Cambridge SeeClickFix rodent requests from the City's open data feed. That separate layer includes a ticket number, status, date, and rounded location. It does not display street addresses, request descriptions, or photos. A City request is a service request, not a verified rat sighting or population count; a closed ticket does not show that rats are gone.
Photos and public display
Photos are optional and appear publicly with a published report. Please photograph rats only; avoid people, faces, house numbers, license plates, and private interiors. Do not submit sensitive personal information in a report.
Retention and removal
This version does not have an automatic retention schedule or a self-service removal form. Reports remain in the project database unless a maintainer removes them. The form does not ask for a name or email address. The protected export and database credentials should remain limited to project maintainers.
How to use the data
Community report counts describe reports, not the number of rats. They cannot establish population size, confirm an infestation, or prove that an abatement effort worked. If the City box is unchecked, a Rat Watch report does not file a City 311 request. When checked, City filing is attempted; if it cannot be completed, the confirmation offers a manual City form link.