Abstract
The development of social networks necessitates their use, including for public purposes. Maintaining social media accounts can have both positive and negative effects on the overall state of society. By their actions, police officers risk damaging the police image and turning public opinion against them. However, it is also possible to use social media to inform people about how to deal with difficult situations and to keep them informed about the progress of the investigation. Police officers must remember that they act as a symbol of the state and, therefore, must be careful what content they make. Creating policies governing how officers can use social media can fill the gaps in the regulation of this process. To do this, the documentation that has already been developed in various states in the United States can be used.
Introduction
With the development of IT technologies, social networks have become widespread, performing a large number of functions, including social, educational, profit-making, etc. However, the main function of social networks is, without a doubt, communication. Law enforcement officers, like most people today, use social media. It should be noted that outside of work, the employee remains the face of the company. Police officers have a special responsibility regarding how they conduct their social networks since they represent the state. Nevertheless, if there is no mention of work on such employees’ social media accounts, it is the personal image and reputation of the individuals themselves. In this case, reprimanding an officer for inappropriate content should be considered an invasion of privacy.
Law Enforcement Abuse of Social Media
With social media, individuals have unique opportunities to share content. Anyone can post photos and videos on Instagram, Twitter, or MySpace that can be seen by a huge number of people. The relationship between social networks and law enforcement has led to the emergence of new types of police encounters. A situation arises when people’s personal boundaries are violated and they begin to be followed by surveillance. For example, undercover law enforcement officers have begun creating profiles with fake profile information and sending requests to be added as friends (Schuppe, 2018). People chasing the highest number of contacts on a social network find themselves in danger of being read by law enforcement.
So far, there have been many precedents of law enforcement officers misusing social media to harm an investigation or the police’s image. For example, the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office’s posts caused a huge public outcry, with people calling for law enforcement officers to be held accountable for their posts on the department’s Facebook page (Corrigan, 2020). There is a trend where, instead of engaging, the police publicly humiliate arrested people or even those whose guilt has not yet been proven (Corrigan, 2020). Accordingly, the number of crimes as a result of such amateurism not only does not decrease but, on the contrary, increases (Corrigan, 2020). Online insults of criminals affect not only themselves but also their family and friends, provoking a sense of frustration with the police force.
The police have a relatively long history of controlling what their officers post on social media. However, it is still not uncommon for officers to be found to have used offensive language in their correspondence. For example, an analysis of police posts revealed thousands of racist, Islamophobic, and other offensive posts (Dewan, 2019). Such findings may signal that officers are biased against religious and ethnic minorities, which violates the principle of fairness in the investigation of cases.
Organizational Use of Social Media
The virtually unlimited capacity of social networks to establish communication between people is used for their purposes by criminal communities, terrorist organizations, religious fanatics, and foreign intelligence services. The goals they pursue are often unlawful, endangering the lives and health of citizens and the security of the state (Prieto Curiel et al., 2020). The presence of police officers on social networks in this way contributes to the solvability of criminal offenses in case the activity of criminals on social networks can be recorded. Police officers often use social networks to involve the public in the search for missing persons. In Youngstown, for example, the police department effectively uses Facebook pages to find lost children (Mujahed, 2019). Creating virtual groups or messengers allows to involvement up to several hundred people in a short period of time, thereby significantly increasing the effectiveness of the search.
The modern system of public administration and executive power cannot stand aside from the promising information space for establishing contacts with the population. Certainly, no one would discuss a contract killing or bank robbery on Facebook. However, underage drinking or vandalism may well have evidence on social networking sites, and sometimes such actions can be prevented by law enforcers. Among the most famous cases when, due to social networks, a crime has been investigated are the murder of Jun Lin, the identification of the “Grateful Doe” and the hit-and-run of Susan Rainwater (Cottreau-Moore, 2020). The activity of users of social networks is what helps to attract the police’s attention. Accordingly, more cases are solved, which reduces the overall crime rate.
Law Enforcement Best Practice for the Regulation Officer Social Media Activity
Social media is certainly becoming an increasingly important way for ordinary people and public organizations to communicate. Due to them, it is possible to disseminate information quickly and attract volunteers and resources, particularly to fight crime (Lev-On & Yavetz, 2020). It is important to note that according to recent studies, how the public perceives the image of the police depends on how high the crime rate is (Lev-On & Yavetz, 2020). Maintaining personal accounts on social networks can enhance the image of officers in the eyes of the community.
The New South Wales Police Force has compiled a document defining how social media can be used by officers. In particular, officers are supposed to address criticism on social media by providing non-confidential information (New South Wales Police Force, 2021). In addition, the Congressional Research Service establishes a ban on the use of personal social media for official purposes (2022). In addition, the Police Complaint Panel has produced a document that also specifies how social media should be handled. In particular, it makes officers highly accountable for the content they share (Office of Police Complaints, 2020). This is important because their actions can affect the entire department.
I interviewed one agent and asked him what the rules and purpose of using social media in his department are. The following is an excerpt from his response:
To begin with, we actively use social media in our outreach efforts. The corporate accounts of our department are present on all social networks, including Instagram, where in a few months we managed to attract more than 5,000 followers. In addition, we have our own channel on YouTube – both there and on social networks we promptly post information about incidents in the region, and our experts give advice on how to behave in difficult situations. As for personal accounts, police officers are not forbidden to have them on Instagram, Facebook, or other social networks. However, law enforcement officers should keep in mind the ethical and legal aspects of running an account.
Thus, the judicious use of social media can bring clear benefits. Positive consequences include preventing the commission of crimes and informing the public about how to behave in difficult situations. In addition, official accounts may contain information that debunks myths about police officers. It is also possible to prevent the dissemination of information harmful to the image of human rights bodies. In turn, maintaining personal accounts by officers can also be useful – they can share the results of successful investigations and post information about the progress of the case.
Departmental Policy Outline
The way social networking should be handled by police officers
Police officers are advised not to post information on the web, including photos and video recordings that allow to determine their personal data and affiliation with the internal affairs bodies.
They are advised not to publish information that may cause a negative reaction in society; materials discrediting the image of the employee, or damaging the credibility and business reputation of the internal affairs bodies. The purpose of maintaining official social media accounts is to benefit the public in the fight against crime.
Posting personal information on social networks
Officers should not post offensive content or share confidential information. Photos of criminals or those under suspicion should not be shared online. On social networks, police officers are obliged to refrain from harsh actions and harsh words in relation to the offender. It is advisable to refrain from using personal accounts for official purposes. Accordingly, official accounts should not be used for personal purposes without special permission.
Conclusion
From a Christian perspective, help is supposed to be given to every member of the community. Therefore, officers are to do all they can to reduce the number of crimes committed. If this requires them to use social media, it should not be prohibited. However, it would be desirable to have a policy that governs what the officers’ behavior should be. For this purpose, the documents already developed by representatives of the authorities can be used.
References
Congressional Research Service. (2022). Law enforcement and technology: Using social media. Web.
Corrigan, H. (2020). Basically, cyberbullying: How cops abuse social media to publicly humiliate.The Appeal. Web.
Cottreau-Moore, A. (2020). 3 times social media users helped police solve crimes.MUO. Web.
Dewan, S. (2019). When police officers went on Facebook.The New York Times. Web.
Lev-On, A., & Yavetz, G. (2020). Police in social media: To protect and share? First Monday, 26(1), 1-14.
Mujahed, M. (2019). Social media used as a tool in missing persons investigations. YO Magazine. Web.
New South Wales Police Force. (2021). Official use of social media policy and procedures. Web.
Office of Police Complaints. (2020). Personal use of social media: Report and recommendations of the Police Complaints Board. Web.
Prieto Curiel, R., Cresci, S., Muntean, C. I., Bishop, S. R. (2020). Crime and its fear in social media. Palgrave Communications, 6(57), 1-12.
Schuppe, J. (2018). Undercover cops break Facebook rules to track protesters, ensnare criminals.NBC News. Web.