Language and Online Identities: The Undercover Policing of Internet Sexual Crime

Forensic linguistics is a crucial tool in detecting child sexual abuse online, and language and identity are fundamental to this process. This book demonstrates innovative methods for identifying online personas and explores the link between language and identity. It has real-life impact in assisting police investigations and has implications for the study of linguistic identities.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 213 pages
Publication date: 21 March 2024
Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Forensic linguistics plays a crucial role in the undercover policing of child sexual abuse occurring on the open internet and the dark web. Language and identity are fundamental aspects of this investigation. The authors, with extensive experience in training undercover officers, have developed innovative methods for identifying the creation and performance of online personas, which are essential in detecting identity disguise online. This groundbreaking book showcases these methods through case studies, while also exploring the relationship between language and identity. By reconciling previously divergent perspectives in forensic authorship analysis, the book proposes a novel theory of linguistic identity that has implications beyond forensic authorship research and extends to sociolinguistics. This unique forensic linguistic project has a significant real-life impact by assisting law enforcement in investigating online abusers. It also benefits students and researchers of linguistics by contributing to the study of linguistic identities.

Forensic linguistics is at the cutting edge of the undercover policing of child sexual abuse on the open internet and dark web, and language and identity is a fundamental part of this.

The authors, with extensive experience in training undercover officers, have developed innovative methods for identifying the creation and performance of online personas, which are essential in detecting identity disguise online. This groundbreaking book showcases these methods through case studies, while also exploring the relationship between language and identity. By reconciling previously divergent perspectives in forensic authorship analysis, the book proposes a novel theory of linguistic identity that has implications beyond forensic authorship research and extends to sociolinguistics. This unique forensic linguistic project has a significant real-life impact by assisting law enforcement in investigating online abusers. It also benefits students and researchers of linguistics by contributing to the study of linguistic identities.

This unique forensic linguistic project has a significant real-life impact by assisting law enforcement in investigating online abusers. It also benefits students and researchers of linguistics by contributing to the study of linguistic identities.

ISBN-13: 9781108720038