(Thumbnail image: KSAX-TV) 

“This isn’t some TV crime drama, it’s the new way of cutting edge crime fighting. In the old days they had dogs, in Westerns like ‘Shane,’ rifles. But in these days, there’s a new weapon: the Internet.” (ABC News)

Homeowners across the United States are using social media sites like YouTube to combat neighborhood crime, but online tools like this can help the perpetrators as well.

We’re taking a look at WGCL, ABC News, WNYW and The Christian Science Monitor.   

CBS Atlanta tells the story of one homeowner who posted a surveillance video of his home being robbed, on the Internet in hopes someone could identify the criminals.

“You can’t see this man’s face, but look at his cap his shirt blue jeans, his shoes, look how skinny he is, the way he walks and stands. Someone knows this crook and his partner. As you can see, they kicked in Michael Stephens’ front door and stole his flat screen TV.”

Stephens: “My first reaction when this happened today was get it on YouTube, share it with my neighbors…”

One couple’s surveillance video has more than 40,000 hits on YouTube and even led to a conviction: the first in Atlanta. ABC News highlights the story of Dan and Alyssa Kopp.
 

Dan Kopp: “We posted it on YouTube, not to just send it out to everybody so everyone could see it; it was to pass around to the community to say, look, these people in this car are driving around in this neighborhood, be on the lookout.”

The Christian Science Monitor brings the perspective of a criminologist at Florida State University, who says using social media is a good way for citizens to combat crime.

“It's like reality 'CSI' and certainly a new spin on the neighborhood watch. [It] gives people ... a way to be anonymous, where the fear of retaliation might be lower.”

On the flip side, criminals are also using social media to their advantage. One security analyst tells FOX News New York that the Internet has become a new way for criminals to track their targets.

“It does seem to be a phenomenon that is occurring. I think more and more people are getting onto the social networking sites and are putting information about themselves out there, probably with the best of intentions of either encouraging friends or trying to communicate with people, but it’s all the bad guys and bad gals out there that are looking at it and using that against them – committing robberies at their homes.”

So, is it a smart idea to use social networking sites to catch crooks? Or should we leave that up to the police? And what’s the risk of giving the criminal more information? Let us know what you think, and be sure to check out our transcripts.

Writer: Kyrsten Skulborstad

Producer: Nathan Giannini