Open Source Crime Solving

from the need-a-hobby? dept

Some people play online card games. Some people write blogs. And, some people, it appears, spend their free time trying to solve mysterious missing person/unidentified body cases. It turns out there's a large group of amateur online sleuths who try to keep track of news on missing persons and unidentified bodies and help the police and the FBI make the connections they've been missing. The group has apparently solved eight cases in two years. I guess you could consider it "open source crime solving". The group, the Doe Network (after the always available stand-ins John & Jane's surname) runs a website that includes information about missing person and unidentified bodies and lets anyone help piece together the puzzle. Imagine expanding such a system to general open source crime solving. Get mugged and think the police aren't doing enough? Why not post all the details on an online system and let others help you solve the crime?
Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team


Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread


  • identicon
    dorpus, 8 Sep 2003 @ 8:26pm

    Avenger's Paradise

    How many pissed-off ex-spouses will find ways to "prove" their ex did it?

    link to this | view in chronology ]


Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.