The Finnish police have observed the changes in the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, over the past year. In order to secure operational security, the police will transfer operational communications from X to the Poliisi.fi website from 1 February 2024 onwards.
In recent years, the police have used Twitter, currently X, for the purposes of operational communications (including assignments involving danger to the health and safety of others, acute criminal matters and traffic accidents) to reach, first and foremost, the media, through which messages from the police have been distributed quickly and efficiently to the general public.
As consequence of the changes in X, particularly regarding the visibility of messages, the platform no longer serves the needs of operational communications by the police as it did before. Even vital messages, such as requests for assistance in searching for missing persons, may come up in the news flow hours, even days after being sent.
“Speed and reliability are key in operational communications of the police. When we want to communicate information about ongoing police operations or need assistance from the general public, or their observations, it is vital that we can be confident that the message reaches recipients almost in real time,” says Chief Superintendent Eeva Törmänen of the National Police Board.
“By transferring operational communications to our own Poliisi.fi website that is open for all, we also promote equality. However, the police will continue to use X in the future to inform the public about non-operational matters,” Törmänen says.
Operational news items will also be automatically channeled to X as feed, including to the @PoliisiTiedote account.
News items updated as new information becomes available
On 1 February, the police will introduce a new update function in communicating news about operational situations.
In practical terms, this means that as soon as an operational situation comes up, first news will be published in the police online service Poliisi.fi. As soon as new information becomes available, the news item will be updated in the same way as in online newspapers, says Senior Adviser Timo Torvinen of the National Police Board.
“The latest information that has changed will be given in the beginning of the news item, with a time stamp. The time stamp of the most recent change will also appear in the news heading.
So, this is not a new platform or a new system, but a change in the way the police operate, using the news in Poliisi.fi in a different way.
Because this is a new functionality, it is possible that there will be minor hitches to start with in the production of updated news items. We ask for patience by media representatives and others who follow police news while we are learning to use the new procedure,” says Torvinen.
He emphasizes that if necessary, the police can communicate through multiple channels to ensure communication of vital information.
