Social media targeted

SOCIAL media is both a blessing and a curse for police as they work to halt the escalation in youth crime.

On the one hand, offenders posting videos of their offences online give police visual evidence in their investigations.

But on the other hand, the trend amplifies the community’s fear of the unchecked crime.

Worst of all, offenders gain notoriety and can connect with like-minded individuals across the country, forming an antisocial peer group that is hard to bust open.

In response, Queensland Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll announced the QPS will employ a team of 25 social media experts.

Some of these staff members will be embedded within the Crime and Intelligence Command.

“This is not just about getting evidence from social media, but also to make sure police are proactive about putting information into social media,” she said.

It is hoped they will take on both the criminals and the social media giants who host the videos.

“It is absolutely abhorrent,” Mr Carroll said.

“I find it hard to understand that someone thinks this is a good thing to do, to record someone’s misery.

“There is something serious wrong if you think that is something to put on social media.”

The new social media team will help investigators gather evidence and work with the Federal Government’s E-Safety Commission to have offensive material taken down.

“The E-Safety Commission has been strong on this in the past, but it is difficult,” she said.

“The videos have to be quite extreme for the social media companies to take action.

“I don’t know what the future holds in that space but we really do need to keep trying because it is one of the things that drives (offenders’) behaviour.”