Increased participation on social networking sites has resulted in law enforcement officers in New York and across the nation to turn to sites such as Facebook for information and evidence.
Officers can use information found on individual users' pages to track their location, view photos and other personal information shared on their profiles. And it is not just information made public by the users' privacy settings. Facebook's privacy agreement allows Facebook to share information posted on the website with law enforcement officials if there is a good faith belief that the law requires exposure of the information.
Facebook will divulge information about its users to law enforcement if there is a good faith belief that it is necessary for any of the following reasons:
- To prevent, detect or address any illegal behavior
- To protect against violations of Facebook's Statement of Rights and Responsibilities
- To prevent unavoidable bodily harm or death
Catching Suspects Using Facebook
In the last few months there have been multiple reports of authorities in numerous states - including New York - using Facebook as an investigative tool to capture individuals suspected of criminal behavior. Some of these reports include:
- Officers using Facebook to identify criminals based on descriptions given by victims.
- Investigators, looking into the murder of a New York woman, found rap lyrics about murder on a Brooklyn man's Facebook status. He was later accused of killing his girlfriend and charged with possession of a deadly weapon.
- A Texas detective using a Facebook status to track down and apprehend a suspect at a club where the suspect was celebrating his birthday.
- Police departments in Texas using Facebook to track locations and capture criminals who have escaped officers in previous attempts at apprehension.
Anything you write or post on the internet, from Facebook and Twitter to a personal blog, can be used as evidence in criminal investigations and trials. It is important to keep this in mind; be careful about posting your personal information, pictures, plans and whereabouts on Facebook or other social media sites.
