Asian Journal of Criminal Justice and Forensic Studies

  • Received 12.01.2026,
  • Revised 21.04.2026,
  • Accepted 11.06.2026
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Vol. 2, No. 1, 2026
  • cyber slavery; mass victimisation; criminal dynamics; digital platforms; digital footprints; syndicate
  • https://doi.org/10.63621/ ajcjfs/1.2026.04
  • Pages 4-14

The purpose of the study was to investigate the use of social media by law enforcement agencies to detect and investigate organised crime in the Philippines. The study used a set of complementary methods: an analytical and applied approach based on secondary data analysis, a method of system structural analysis, an analytical and synthetic method, a case study, and a method of analysing social networks. It was proved that Open Source Intelligence and Social Network Analysis were transformed into the basis of the Intelligence-Led Policing strategy. It was determined that such methodological integration allows investigators to convert fragmented digital traces into verified physical coordinates of criminal hubs. This proved the feasibility of switching from traditional mass arrests to a strategy of spot neutralisation of key network nodes (brokers and organisers) identified using centrality metrics. This justified the strategic transition from reactive arrests to point-by-point neutralisation of key network nodes (brokers and organisers) identified through network analysis. In the context of the study, a number of practical recommendations were developed aimed at institutionalising the M-SNOS methodology in law enforcement agencies in the Philippines. The  developed practical recommendations summarised the need to institutionalise hybrid counteraction by creating a Joint Digital Intelligence Fusion Centre and reorienting the operational strategy to point-by-point neutralisation of key network nodes. The practical significance of the results lies in the fact that law enforcement organisations and technology platforms (Meta, TikTok) can use them to institutionalise the M-SNOS model and implement the legal and operational protocols necessary for a systematic fight against transnational cybercrime

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