The crime maps displayed on WRAL.com are provided by SpotCrime.com. SpotCrime.com processes crime incident data from a variety of sources, including police and sheriff's departments, media feeds and citizens. The data is then plotted on Google Maps based on locations provided in crime reports. 

The detail and immediacy of the data varies by source. Some departments, such as Raleigh and Fayetteville, proivded daily updates, though the data may be several days behind the current date. Other departments update their feeds weekly, such as Cary. Regardless, all data available to WRAL.com and SpotCrime.com is displayed as soon as we receive it.

WRAL.com is working with SpotCrime.com to add data for more cities and counties. The ability to add new data depends on the availability of reliable and timely data. You are encouraged to contact your local law enforcement agency to request that they make their data available to SpotCrime.com.

E-mail alerts are sent on behalf of WRAL.com by SpotCrime.com. The company's privacy policy can be viewed here.