ABSTRACT
Law enforcement agencies and officers are stuck right in the middle of social media war fare. Criminal activity is riddled with social media warfare tactics as are law enforcement's efforts to fight crime. Social protest and civil disobedience is organized quickly using social media and often more quickly than law enforcement can respond. This chapter examines some of the issues and challenges that law enforcement agencies are addressing in the realm of social media warfare. To protect employees, law enforcement agencies are implementing internal management mechanisms to lessen this potential threat. Social media sites and resources should be viewed as another tool in the law enforcement investigative toolbox and should be used in a manner that adheres to the same principles that govern all law enforcement activity. One of the most important functions in social media warfare is data collection and analysis that can help determine the defensive and offensive social media warfare tactics necessary.
