Criminal Justice: Finding Websites

To view lists of useful websites in Criminal Justice, mouseover the "Finding Websites" tab and from the drop-down menu click on the category that best fits your information needs, or click on the links below:

How can you tell if a web site is trustworthy or not? It's not always easy, but there are things that you can look for that will help you decide.

• Who is the author? Are they qualified to talk about this subject?
• How accurate is the information? You may need to compare what you find with another source to answer this question.
• Who is the audience? This can influence how much detail is included.
• What point of view is being represented? All sites have a bias, but is it obvious or are they trying to hide something?
• How up to date is the site? Older information may no longer be accurate.

Check out building trust in law enforcement page.  This guide outlines what law enforcement organizations are already doing to foster confidence, and what else can and needs to be done.

Library Services has a tutorial on Evaluating Information that can guide you through making good judgement calls on the information you find on the web. It takes only 10-15 minutes to complete and can save you a lot of time in the long run.