Social Media Websites in Investigations

Overview

Social media contains a vast amount of information in the form of posts, comments, images, videos, and beyond. This information, which is often publicly available on individuals' profiles, is increasingly being used by governments, businesses, and other institutions, in order to access knowledge that would otherwise be unavailable. The use of social media in investigations by entities such as governments, private investigators, insurance firms, law firms, and universities prompts a variety of ethical questions and implications for society.