Social media remains an untapped resource in many professions.  A new survey by Accenture indicates that the majority of citizens worldwide believe they can take a more active role in reducing crime rates if police were to better incorporate social media in their work.  View the infographic below for more information on this study.

About 1,300 people took part in this 6-country survey, with citizens from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain and the Netherlands coming to a pretty convincing conclusion.  If police forces were to engage the citizenry via social media, a larger portion of the population would be actively involved in solving (and preventing) crime.

92% of those surveyed want to support their law enforcement, but only 16% felt like they were well-informed enough to get involved.  The gap in communication here is staggering!  We are all familiar with the concept of Amber Alerts, which have proven to be successful in solving crimes against children and bringing them home safely.  Imagine the benefits of getting 92% of citizens more informed and prepared enough to fight crime alongside the police force.

Most people believe that engaging the populace through social media will help catch criminals, and about half of those surveyed believe social media has the potential to improve services and actually prevent crimes from occurring in the first place.  Read the full Accenture report here.