Canberra's police admit they walk a fine line between greater public engagement and potential legal snags as they increasingly turn to social media to interact with the community and snare criminals.
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Chief Police Officer Rudi Lammers has been behind a strong push for the agency to keep pace with technology and engage with the public through social media channels including Facebook, YouTube and Twitter in the past year.
Improved access to a faster internet through the national broadband network and increased use of smartphones were some of the reasons for the focus on harnessing online platforms to encourage community interaction.
But in its latest annual report, ACT Policing has acknowledged that stepping further into the online space has presented "as many pitfalls as opportunities".
A boosted social media presence was prompted by research which showed younger people increasingly wanted to communicate with police through digital platforms.
Police garnered more than 15,000 "Likes" on the official Facebook page, which was launched in February, and 20,000 Twitter followers in the past year.
They say information sourced from the Facebook page has helped solve the kidnapping of a baby which sparked a massive police hunt in Canberra's northern suburbs in February, as well as thefts involving jewellery, war medals and a $40,000 Bobcat.
The report also outlines plans for police to use their social media pages to post
"These two-way, mutual information exchanges are enabling the democratisation of information sharing about crime in the ACT," the report said.
However, ACT Policing also recognised the tensions which arise from the use of social media, Commonwealth privacy legislation, and a person's right to a fair trial.
"While police are strongly motivated to connect with the public so as to generate witness statements and intelligence, the transparency and interaction available via common social media platforms demand careful moderation and
"This activity is time and resource intensive, but vital."
The report also acknowledges other challenges that come with increased use of social media, including the need to protect the privacy of victims and their families, and the "unsolicited and poorly informed commentary" which can be posted anonymously and with little accountability.
Police admitted they would be faced with more "legally challenging" dilemmas as they used fast-changing social media platforms to gather and disseminate crime information.
"The ongoing challenge for police, more so than almost any government agency, is to achieve that critical balance between public transparency, protecting operational security and working within legislative frameworks," the report said.
