Snitching has gone digital. German police have solved crimes by posting line ups online with Facebook. Don’t be living foul because the Facebook is talking. Police lineups in Germany have gone digital, with Hanover Police asking people to identify photofits of crime suspects on its Facebook page.
The police department has nabbed eight criminals since March 2011 when it started crowdsourcing suspects’ photos via Facebook for its pilot manhunt called “Fahndung via Facebook.” The success has prompted the rest of Germany’s law enforcement to consider using Facebook in the same way.
The Hanover Police Department wrote this on its Facebook wall: “Dear Facebook Community, We are pleased with the positive response to our pilot. [It helps] us greatly if you ‘share’ the witness calls and messages.”
While police have seen success, citizens of Germany aren’t so sure of the department’s new suspect identification method. Some are concerned the wrongly accus
ed may face undeserved public scrutiny that suspects wouldn’t receive if the photographs were kept confidential. Additionally, photofits — the digital method of constructing a suspect’s image based on a witness’ description — aren’t always accurate.
ed may face undeserved public scrutiny that suspects wouldn’t receive if the photographs were kept confidential. Additionally, photofits — the digital method of constructing a suspect’s image based on a witness’ description — aren’t always accurate.
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