social media investigations Archives

A Private Investigator’s View of Social Media Intelligence

I am pleased to share with you our first guest blog post. It is written by Larry Forletta, owner of Forletta Investigative/ Security Consulting. As a former DEA agent, Larry Forletta has established many resources in the United States and abroad.

Social media investigations have changed the investigative landscape for private investigators.The forensics have been learned through a series of trial and error, utilizing some of the most popular social media platforms in order to gather essential evidence under the laws of collection. Those who work in this department are sometimes referred to as social media
vendors. However, not all social media forensics are the same and they certainly don’t produce the same results every time.

The effective use of social media has aided many investigations already. One investigation that comes to mind is an attempt to extort money from an individual involved with prostitution. By investigating through social media, the individual’s full identity (including name and base of
operations in the U.S.) was able to be identified. This investigative information was then provided to state authorities who were further able to identify the prostitution extortion individual.

It’s quite amazing what people continue to share on social media platforms. Despite the fact that there can be real consequences for what gets posted online, even if it might seem like fun and games, people continue to post sometimes incriminating and hard evidence that can be used against them. Americans spend more time using social media platforms than any other
internet activity, such as email. Most online evidence is compiled manually by an investigator who might screenshot or archive as needed. If something was sent or posted, perhaps even published, then it can be found and used accordingly.

Even when posts are deleted, they never really go away. Emails can be trashed, and accounts can be removed, yet the data and imprint of what has been put online may be able to be resurfaced with a little help. After all, a private investigator is only as good as their resources.

Our primary social media associate is eChatter, an online global source for social media researchers. They are spearheaded by their president, Kathy Doering, and specialize in a multitude of services including deep web searches and dark web searches. They are professional, communicative, and will get the answers that you need.

Wait…Where Did That Social Media Post Go?

What happened to that social media post you saw yesterday during your recent online investigation? Are you kicking yourself that you did not capture that post when you saw it? It can happen and very often does. The old adage, what is here today, is gone tomorrow, is something that happens all of the time, especially in social media. It may suddenly be changed from “public” to “private” at any point. The user’s entire profile can be deleted at any time. Where will that leave you and your investigation?

Largent V. Reed

Back in 2011 this was not an issue as social media was just starting to grow. In a personal injury lawsuit, Largent v. Reed, the plaintiff claimed that a recent accident had left her with severe physical and mental pain. During the trial, defendants presented her post-accident photos posted to her Facebook profile. These photos revealed the plaintiff was clearly feeling well enough to engage in her daily activities and exercising at her gym on a regular basis.

Fast forward to 2020 and things have changed. People are more aware of what they post and use user names that are different than their real name. Let me give you a recent example. One of our clients requested a deep scan from us for a case that involved fraud. We conducted the scan and produced the report capturing the subject’s Facebook account. Scans include live URL’s as well as screen shots showcasing all publicly available data. Once given to the attorney, he had a question about one of the posts specifically. When attempting to click on the link within the profile post, he came to a dead end. We did capture a screenshot, which in most cases is sufficient for investigative purposes. However, time is critical when conducting this type of research. Looking a little more closely at one of the posts was no longer possible.

Web Preservation

Preserving digital data is something many attorneys are starting to take a serious look at and in some cases are requesting from their private investigators. Judges are getting stricter when it comes to allowing social media as evidence in court. Not all cases make it to court of course, but preserving social media may be that extra step that your clients may want you to take.

Social media posts can be altered quickly, often at the advice of opposing counsel. Be sure not to wait too long to capture the data you need and in some cases, be sure to preserve that data.

Secrets About Social Media Monitoring That Nobody Will Tell You.

By now most people have heard of social media monitoring in one form or another. Social media monitoring is something that companies do in order to maintain a good online presence and to monitor their online reputation. Restaurants, retail stores, doctors, lawyers and more are smart to hire a company to conduct this ongoing research on their behalf. It can reveal a lot about the company and its competitors.

In the investigation world, social media monitoring can take on an entirely new dimension. If you advertise that you conduct social media investigations, this added service could be a great new source of revenue for your company. A recent case study provides a good example of what we are talking about.

An investigator’s client (who is an attorney) was interested in locating an individual involved in a case she was working on. She wanted the individual’s social media watched for updates, as he was not able to be found using traditional surveillance methods. The investigator needed social media monitoring in order to watch for location clues in as close to real time as possible.

In the social media/ online world, things can change in a second. What is sometimes here today, will be gone tomorrow. That is where monitoring comes in. When an investigator uses social media monitoring, they are getting updates in real time. This type of online surveillance can be handy as it allows the investigator to get a clear picture and an update day to day on the whereabouts of his poi. This allows an investigator to act “in the moment” to better target resources to serve the person as needed, or to even find a missing person.

While conducting social media monitoring for this investigator we were able to locate the person. Within their instagram stories, we could see that he was on vacation and wanted to share his experiences. Looking at the background of an image can reveal a lot. We could see that he was visiting a very popular tourist destination. With this added information, it allowed the investigator to target more effectively. This may not be true in every case as some people don’t use social media at all. However, they are in the minority.

So next time you think about social media investigation ask yourself this question:

Would it be of value to my client to conduct social media monitoring for this case?
Some examples include:

Jury monitoring before, during and after a high profile case
Locating a missing person
Threat monitoring

The bottom line to all of this is to begin with the purpose & be certain it is well justified and that you are monitoring open source data only. When needed, this is an additional step in your investigation that may save time and money in the long run. People love to share their experiences online and this will never change. Learn ways to use it to your advantage.

How Gangs use Social Media

Social media is often used to paint yourself in a different light…it can make you seem more popular, more successful, and happier than you really are. In other words, you can take on any persona you want, and quickly develop a following of fans who want to be just like you.

So it’s no surprise that gangs use social media to recruit new members and intimidate rival groups. In the view of police officials, today’s gang violence is largely fueled by social media, which is used to taunt and threaten rivals, or the result of beefs that can span years, involving not just gang members, but their families and friends, as well.

Police have tried different strategies for reducing the violence, from monitoring gang members’ online activity to visiting the homes of friends of homicide victims to talk them out of seeking retribution.

The ever-expanding reliance on social media has for gang-related criminal activity has law enforcement scrambling to stay ahead of emerging trends and platforms. “If your law enforcement agency has yet to incorporate social media investigations as a routine step during your investigative process, your agency is falling behind and missing out on a gold mine of intelligence gathering,” according to Aaron Concepcion, a correctional sergeant in New York with 15 years of service, five of which as the head gang investigator assigned to an intelligence center.

SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS

Over the past 20 years there has been an increase in the use of social media by street gangs. According to the National Gang Investigators Association, the most popular platforms are Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, Google, Flickr, WhatsApp and kik.

It’s now called “cyberbanging” and gangs use the broad reach of social media to recruit new members, intimidate rivals, promote criminal activity, advertise their brand, communicate between members, brag about accomplishment to validate street credibility/dominance, and antagonize rivals.

In gang-plagued Chicago, Lamanta Reese, 19, was gunned down in May 2017 after posting a YouTube video disparaging a rival gang, which included a possibly misconstrued emoji that his shooter believed was an insult against his mother.

The Mexican cartels, specifically Los Zetas, have tracked down and murdered at least four bloggers posting opposition. This includes a 39-year-old woman who was decapitated and two men hanged from an overpass with a sign saying, “This is going to happen to all internet snitches. Pay attention, I’m watching you!”

ONLINE TOOLS FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT

Because of the increased use of social media, law enforcement is stepping up its game in an effort to conduct surveillance and interdiction operations. The new generation of tech-savvy millennials joining the ranks of law enforcement are more in tune with social media trends. Concepcion says he has utilized a wide variety of online tools: “There’s no one-stop-shop or sole technique for mining information online. You might find success with a particular technique on one case, and then find it unsuccessful on another,” he said.

“You would be surprised at the amount of information you can acquire by simply running a name on Pipl.com,” said Concepcion. While most gang members rarely use their real name on social media, searching the profiles of their family, friends and visitors who are less cautious often leads directly to the suspect or provides valuable intelligence.

SOCIAL MEDIA SURVEILLANCE

There is no shortage of operational successes utilizing strategic social media monitoring. In June 2014, NYPD used 1 million Facebook posts in its largest recorded gang raid when officers stormed the General Ulysses S. Grant and Manhattanville housing projects in West Harlem, arresting 40 suspects charged with crimes including murder, assault, and conspiracy in a 145-count indictment.

Another successful case comes from San Diego, California, where members of the West Coast Crips were arrested after some posted selfies that were taken at murder scenes to Facebook; 56 gang members were charged with racketeering and conspiracy to distribute drugs and guns.

“Mining social media may not always hand you a home run like the above cases, but it can provide you with pieces of the puzzle, like a photo for facial recognition, gang affiliations, associations or current locations,” said Concepcion.

Concepcion suggests departments choose at least two officers and begin sending them for training. Next, start searching for suspects they’re already familiar with and continue mining for information. “If there is a particular gang in your area, I’d research and decipher their lingo, as well as read through their lessons if possible,” he said. “You can execute a simple hashtag search on google or Instagram using the same lingo such as #MS13 #BlazingBilly.”

Create files and utilize programs like the snipping tool that comes with most Windows-based computers, and take screen shots as you go. Using the snipping tool also saves the date and time stamps your activity. There is no doubt you will come across pages with photos of familiar suspects, guns and drugs. Your biggest issue will not be finding the activity, but organizing the information and identifying the suspects.

2019 Facebook Search Tips For Social Media Investigations

Social Media Investigations has been known to take an unbelievable amount of your time or that of an employee. Facebook searching is one of the areas that can be the most confusing but can harvest some of the best results. Either way, it can cost you money and you may not even reap the rewards of the time spent.

A good Social Media Investigation Strategy begins with a thorough understanding of each of the platforms you are using in your research. “You don’t know what you don’t know”, sort of thing. 2019 will be the year that goes down in history as the year of privacy, which makes social media investigations even more difficult, but not impossible.

One of the very first things to take a look at when beginning to use a social platform for search purposes, is their privacy settings. This way you know ahead of time exactly what you are up against. In this post, we are going to go over two privacy areas that often get overlooked.

Facebook Minor Privacy

Minor privacy in Facebook is taken very seriously, as it should. Take a look at the privacy clearly stated in Facebook:

Social Media Investigations — Facebook Minor Policy

While searching for a Minor in Facebook is allowed, you may not be privy to the type of information you are looking for. Today’s Tweens and Teens are very good at hiding in social media, which makes our jobs even harder.

Facebook General Privacy

Who can look you up using the phone number provided?

This is quite specific and one you may not have even realized existed. When we think about privacy settings, we think about a few questions to answer and it’s done! Not so with Facebook as you can see. This is where a lot of confusion can come in when it comes to mining social media. Any person may have certain aspects of their profile public, while others are set to private.

Do you want search engines outside of Facebook to link to your profile?

Can’t find the social media profile in a Google search? This may be the reason why. Searching in Facebook is key to overcome this setting. Search in a number of ways – think outside the box.

So, how do you know if your person of interest has these privacy settings in place ? You won’t ever know. You just have to find ways to work around it.

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