Missing Person Reports and Social Media – When and when not to share.

 This is Part One of a series on Social Media Safety. 

 

Missing Person Reports and Social Media:

When and when not to share.

              Social media sites have become useful platforms for the dissemination of missing person information. Far beyond the television and radio systems used previously, social media offers a much wider response range and faster timeline, as the emotional magnet of a missing teenager or child is a powerful call for assistance.

             The widespread dissemination of a missing person report, official or otherwise, can also have a negative effect if such messages remain on social media platforms after the missing individual is located. It should be understood that the wider the dissemination, the more difficult, bordering on impossible, it will be to remove these messages completely. It is the responsibility of those who choose to share legitimate missing person reports to delete their own original posts as soon as it is practical

            As much as social media may be useful in these situations, it can become a hindrance in several ways.

• As shared posts are subsequently re-shared, it becomes increasingly difficult to make a thorough notification that the individual is, for whatever reason, no longer the subject of a search. 
• Individuals who may mean well are quick to post the initial report, and then may never learn of the outcome and their post remains active. In some cases, the individual doing the initial sharing may not even be aware that the search has already been terminated. They fail to check the validity of a post and simply go ahead and share it.
• A subsequent comment to a post stating the person has been located is simply not enough, as many people do not read beyond the post subject, let alone sort through a potentially large number of offers of support to find a message confirming that a person has been located and the search completed.
  

Spotting a Fake Missing Person Report

     Social media pages and other websites dedicated to advertising are dependent on individuals clicking into them. These sites may use outdated missing person posts and will portray them as active as a lure commonly known as “click bait”. This is also true for posts that report individuals as wanted by the police, and can remain active long after the individual is captured. Often, these individuals are the subject of vengeance and are not sought by the police at all. The best way to determine if these posts are worth sharing is to carefully read them. These posts will often contain language and punctuation errors a police agency simply would not allow in an official notice. When receiving such a post and considering sharing it, always be suspicious. These posts will contain many of the following indicators, and caring people will take the time to make sure the information they are sharing is accurate:

• The post contains a missing person meme that is not sponsored by a law enforcement agency, and may have contact information for a private individual. I strongly recommend against individuals posting their own personal missing person alerts. Missing persons reports and the contact point for information should always be coordinated through a law enforcement agency.
   
• The post requires a click through to another site that is not clearly identified. "Blind" clicking is never a safe practice.
   
• The post originates from a site that contain a wide array of advertising on their front page. Illegitimate sites often portray themselves to be news outlets such as radio stations or local newspapers. Some may even be dedicated to sharing missing person bulletins. These sites should always be considered suspicious and be verified for validity before sharing their material. You can do this by a separate search of the station or news outlet to see if the search takes you to the same site. Remember any webpage you visit can contain tracking software that records your information.
   
• Be wary of unofficial posts that contain extreme danger warnings. A search for a subject who can be considered dangerous should always be handled by law enforcement.
   
• Posts that are designed to instill fear or paranoia are far more likely to be invalid. If the post indicates the individual was abducted, and goes into detail about suspicious vehicles or persons and less about the missing person, suspect an agenda is being played out. The "I was almost abducted and forced into sex work at Wal-Mart" posts are a good example of this concept.
   
• Posts that contain statements such as “Police want you to share this with as many people as possible” or “Let all your friends know” and “THIS IS REAL” are never used in official bulletins. Be wary of these and similar statements in other posts.
   
• As much as social media standards regarding grammar and punctuation have been relaxed, those standards in law enforcement have not been. Errors in sentences, poor graphic content, and photographs of low quality are sure signs that a post is fraudulent.
   
• READ the entire post and any connected article before sharing, always being careful about click-troughs and blind links. Often the headline of a link in a social media post remains unchanged, but the article will be updated, usually with the word “FOUND” in the new lead.
   
•  Check all dates. Compare the time stamp on the social media post you are reading with the information contained in any connected articles. This will determine if the social media poster shared the alert without checking to see if the person had been found. Notify this poster that the missing person has been found and urge them to delete the post. Ignore the reply "Well, better safe than sorry" because in this case, it isn't.
   
• Take the time to search the missing individual’s name. This will often lead to a reliable source with verifying information.
   
•  Should you decide to share a missing person report, take responsibility for it. When someone comments that the individual has been found, DELETE any thread addressing the missing person you have created in its entirety, and replace it with a new post reporting the change in status. Do NOT simply add a comment or ignore the prompt that the person has been found.
  

        When people fail to follow these simple steps, reports remain active and can lead to problems. Unfortunately, not all missing person cases result in the person returning safely. Even the official bulletins when left online can result in unnecessary calls to police information lines to report what amounts to a false sighting. Bereaved families do not need to see recirculated images of their deceased loved ones days, weeks. or even months later.
         

Posting an Effective Message.

        Social media messages posted by parents and concerned relatives can result in the location and return of a missing person. Recognizing that social media can play an important role in these cases, it is imperative that such messages follow a basic information structure such as this one:

• The full name of the subject.
  
  
• The time, date, and location the individual was last seen.
  
  
• A physical description, including a recent photograph and a clothing description if available.
  IMPORTANT: Photographs that have been flipped or reversed, such as “Selfies” can significantly alter the subject's appearance. These and other low-quality photographs should only be used if no other photograph is available.
  
  
• A contact number for information.
   
• Pertinent emergent medical information if it applies and is available, such as allergies, need for medical attention or medication, or other chronic conditions that may apply.
   
• A statement that under no circumstances should a civilian attempt to contact a suspected missing person on their own and to report suspicious activity to law enforcement immediately.

        If a police agency is conducting an investigation any missing person notices MUST originate with that agency. Only the agency name and contact information should be used in any other notices or posts. Once a police agency issues a missing person post on social media, every effort to delete privately posted material should be made immediately, and the official bulletin shared in its place. Prompt deletion of all related bulletins should occur when the individual is located and the search terminated.

        Social media platforms can be useful in these and other public safety situations. Information found on such platforms should always be thoroughly verified before sharing.

• Only share valid information. If in doubt, check or leave it alone.
   
• Update posts as situations change. It is your responsibility.
   
• Delete your posts when they are no longer valid.