Pinterest as crime fighting tool

Social media has been used in crime fighting.  I have written about Facebook as a tool for law enforcement. Facebook is a free social networking website that allows users to create profiles, upload photos and video, send messages and keep in touch with friends. There are more than 900 million users worldwide.

Law enforcement officials are among those 900 million users. Facebook has been used in investigations, as evidence and for purposes of arrest.

Pinterest is the new social media crime fighter. Pinterest is one of the fastest-growing social media sites out there. It works best to share images — or, as it's called on Pinterest, "pin" them.

According to WHYY-FM, a crime reporter at The Mercury in Pottstown, Pennsylvania had the idea to start a gallery of mug shots of people wanted by the police. Pottstown Police Capt. F. Richard Drumheller says calls came in to his tip line right away.

"We've actually seen a 57 percent increase in our warrant services, and we actually got more people based on our tips and our calls," Drumheller told WHYY-FM."This is a way to get all of those people out there all the time in front of more people," Lauri Stevens a social media consultant for law enforcement told WHYY-FM.

Women make up 80 percent of Pinterest users, so they're especially likely to be exposed to the images.

"It's going to be the younger-ish women, who are decision-makers, heads of households, or at least the decision-makers running the family. They are the ones who are going to be most engaged," Stevens says.

To read more:  http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2012/12/07/166678862/to-catch-a-suspect-on-pinterest