Law Enforcement, Social Media, and Youth: Family Tips

Question: How does law enforcement use social media for investigations of youth, especially minoritized populations? Do you have any tips for families?

Answer: When you post photos, comments, or updates about your life on social media or use online tools and apps, you’re creating a digital footprint. A digital footprint is a collection of your online information. It’s good to remember that a lot of this information can be seen by others, including law enforcement officials. A 2014 study found that 81% of law enforcement officials use social media to help with their investigations (LexisNexis, 2014).

How Law Enforcement Officials Can Use Social Media

After a crime, police can look at social media posts to create a timeline of events or a profile of suspects.

• Law enforcement personnel may create fake profiles to follow suspected individuals and gather information.
• Police may also monitor social media to prevent crimes by watching for signs of gang activity or threats in the community. Officials look for content or images of gang signs, weapons, vehicles, tattoos and graffiti. These investigations may sometimes include surveilling friends and family of suspected individuals. This kind of online surveillance often happens without users knowing, especially among young people, who might share their location without realizing it (I.e., GPS coordinates embedded in a shared image).
• Social media content can also be used as evidence in court, including private messages sent via social media.

Lack of Training  

Even though more police agencies are using social media to help with investigations, many have no formal training in how to do it properly. This can lead to unfair practices that disproportionately harm communities of color. A 2014 study found that about 75% of law enforcement officials had no formal training for using social media during investigations. More research is needed on current training practices.

Impact on Minority Youth 

Research is limited, but some experts, like Dr. Desmond Upton Patton, suggest that social media surveillance can target minority youth unfairly. 

Patton uses examples of case studies to argue that law enforcement’s use of social media for investigations and policing disproportionately affects minority communities in ways that highlight racial and religious biases.

For example, police might make wrong assumptions about young Black people based on their online interactions, ignoring the context of their communication. Patton also argues that tools like Geofeedia, a website that organizes social media content by location, can lead to increased scrutiny of communities of color, which can contribute to mass incarceration.

Tips for Families

Parents can help their children stay safe online by teaching them about privacy and the lasting nature of social media posts. Here are some tips to encourage smart social media practices:

1. Use the AAP Family Media Plan Tool to educate children on media privacy.
2. Teach your child to think carefully before posting personal information, especially if it contains details like a home address or anything that they wouldn’t want a police officer to see.
3. Warn teens about the risks of sharing intimate photos online. If the picture includes a minor, they could face criminal charges for possessing child pornography which can lead to serious legal issues.
4. Talk with your children about the potential for online discrimination and criminalization, just like you would about real-world interactions. The American Psychological Association provides tips for discussing discrimination with your child.

References

• Fallik, S. W., Deuchar, R., Crichlow, V. J., & Hodges, H. (2020). Policing through social media: A qualitative exploration. International Journal of Police Science & Management, 22(2), 208–218. 
• Frank, D. R., Cheng, C. & Pun, V. (2011). Social media sites: New fora for criminal, communication, and investigation opportunities (No. 021). Public Safety Canada.  
• Hackman, R. (2015). Is the online surveillance of black teenagers the new stop-and-frisk?   
• Lane, J., Ramirez, F. A., & Pearce, K. E. (2018). Guilty by Visible Association: Socially Mediated Visibility in Gang Prosecutions. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 23(6), 354–369. 
• Lane, J., & Ramirez, F. A. (2024). Carceral communication: Mass incarceration as communicative phenomenon. New Media & Society, 26(2), 674–691. 
• LexisNexis Risk Solutions. (2014, February). Survey of Law Enforcement Personnel and Their Use of Social Media.    
• Patton, D. U., Brunton, D.-W., Dixon, A., Miller, R. J., Leonard, P., & Hackman, R. (2017). Stop and Frisk Online: Theorizing Everyday Racism in Digital Policing in the Use of Social Media for Identification of Criminal Conduct and Associations. Social Media + Society, 3(3), 2056305117733344. 
• Wang, Y., Yu, W., Liu, S., & Young, S. D. (2019). The Relationship Between Social Media Data and Crime Rates in the United States. Social Media + Society, 5(1), 10.1177/2056305119834585. 

Age: 10-17

Topics: Social media, law enforcement, criminal investigations, youth, minorities

Role: Parent or Advocate