SOCIAL MEDIA AND CRIME ANALYSIS: THE INTERSECTION OF ONLINE POSTING AND LAW ENFORCEMENT INVESTIGATIONS

The current use of social media platforms has expanded to wider audiences, including police departments and other law enforcement agencies. The vast material being posted online may lead to it being used by police departments due to social media information being open-sourced. The following study will investigate the police’s use of social media data by collecting qualitative data from crime analysts through the International Association of Crime Analysts (IACA). Participants completed an openended survey describing their experience with collecting data from online social media sources and how it is used to assist with police activity. The results have implications for future research, such as further exploring the methods by which police are expanding their data collection. Caution may be required when sharing information online. Results from the study may inspire future research regarding the privacy and ethical considerations of using social media data collected from the public.