Help & FAQ

ChatBridge is random 1 to 1 video chat, exclusively for Cambridge students. It runs as scheduled events: during an event you press Start, get matched with another student at random, and talk over live video. When a call ends you can meet the next person or head home.

A bit. You are paired at random for a live video call, the way Omegle worked. The difference is that everyone signs in with Raven, so everyone you meet is a verified Cambridge student, and you can report anyone and never see them again.

Any current Cambridge student. You log in with Raven, so everyone you meet on ChatBridge is a verified Cambridge student.

No. ChatBridge is an independent project run by a current student and a graduate of the university. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by the University of Cambridge or any of its colleges. Raven login is used only to check that you are a current Cambridge student.

ChatBridge runs as scheduled events rather than all day. Upcoming events are listed on your home page with a countdown, and you can take a place ahead of time. Some events have a limited number of places, and once they are full you join a waitlist.

No. ChatBridge is free to use.

No. ChatBridge runs in your web browser on a phone, tablet or laptop. You need a camera, a microphone and a Raven login.

When you press Start you join a queue and are paired at random with another student at the same event. When the call ends you can go straight back into the queue to meet someone new.

Your first name during the call. If you share a college, a course or an interest, a short banner points it out, but nothing else from your profile is shown. Your CRSid is only shown to people you both choose to add as friends after a call.

We try hard not to. During an event you are matched with people you have not met yet first, and never with the same person twice in a row. If you report someone, or they report you, you will never be matched with each other again.

Press End call, then confirm. The call also ends for both of you if the other person leaves. Afterwards you can choose whether to add them as a friend, then meet the next person or go home.

After a call, you can each choose to add the other person as a friend on the screen that follows it. It only happens if both of you press the button, so add them before you leave that screen. Friends can open each other's profile and see each other's CRSid, and you can remove or block a friend at any time.

In Friends, from the menu at the top of your home page. Everyone you have added is there with their CRSid, so you do not need to write anything down. If you swapped CRSids with someone before friends existed, they are already on your list.

No. Calls are live video only. Nothing you say or show is recorded or stored.

Your profile (first name, college, course, degree, matriculation year, any interests you pick, and if you add them your photo, favourite places, a change to your year of study and your Instagram and LinkedIn), when your calls happened and how long they lasted, and who you have added as a friend. We never store call audio or video. The Privacy Policy has the full list.

Use the Report button during the call. Pick a category and add a message if you like. Reporting does not end the call, so you can leave whenever you are ready. The two of you will never be matched again, and our team reviews every report.

Reports are reviewed and can lead to a temporary timeout or a permanent ban. Repeated reports from different people lead to an automatic suspension while the team reviews.

An automated check for explicit content runs during calls. It works entirely in your browser, and no image ever leaves your device. If it detects something, the other person on the call may be asked to confirm what they saw, and only a confirmed incident leads to action on the account. We keep only a record that a detection happened, never a picture.

You can submit an appeal from the page you see when you log in. Appeals are reviewed by the team, and a successful appeal lifts the block.

Check that your browser has permission to use your camera and microphone, and that no other app is using them. Then refresh the page and try again.

Use the Help button in the top left corner of any page once you are logged in, or in the call controls during a call. From there you can report a bug or request a feature. Reports go straight to the team.

An event someone runs on ChatBridge for their own group, like a conference, a society event, or a company social. You join it with an invite link instead of the normal Cambridge schedule.

It depends on the event. Most private events only ask for your name, so anyone with the invite link can take part without a Raven login or an email address. Some are for Cambridge students only, and ask you to log in with Raven instead. Either way, you need to be 18 or over.

It depends on the event. At an event that only asks for names we do not check who anyone is, so treat it the way you would treat meeting someone at the event itself. At a Cambridge-only event, and everywhere else on ChatBridge, everyone has signed in with Raven.

Only other people at the same event. Private events are sealed off from the main app and from each other, so you will never be matched with someone who is not at the event with you.

At an event that only asks for names, your first and last name, on screen during the call and afterwards, and nothing else. There are no friends there, so no contact details are shared either way. At a Cambridge-only event it works like the rest of ChatBridge: your first name, and you can choose to add each other as friends after the call.

At an event that only asks for names, we keep your name and a record that you joined, and nothing else. If you want that removed, email team@chatbridge.chat and we will delete it. At a Cambridge-only event, your details are handled like any other ChatBridge account.

Use the Report button on the call screen. It works exactly the same as anywhere else on ChatBridge, and the same bans and blocks apply.

Yes. Email team@chatbridge.chat with the date, the time, and roughly how many people you expect. We set each event up by hand and send you a join link to share with everyone coming.