10 • Psychological Effects of Undercover Policing Channels 2022 health stigma in law enforcement culture is ever present. Addressing mental health concerns within the law enforcement field is incredibly complex and encompasses many fears officers may have. Officers may fear discovery from their department and superiors, being labeled by others within the workforce as weak or unable to do their job. Some may even fear being demoted or rejected promotions due to coming forward with mental health concerns (Garnett & Eure, 2019). Therefore, while a department may provide mental health resources to their officers, the likelihood the officers will use these resources is diminished primarily out of such fears. Modern Developments in Modern Day Policing As do most things, undercover operations have continued to evolve as the surrounding culture does. While there are still undercover operations that are physically involved, there is a new uprising of web-based undercover operations as well. These operations often involve officers posing as underage youths in order to capture suspects for crimes relating to sexual offenses or pornography. As noted above, there are two primary forms of undercover operations: short term and “deep cover.” However, the differences between the two begin to blur when entering the atmosphere of web-based undercover operations. These operations are typically short in duration, thus being similar to the above definition of a short-term operation. However, webbased undercover operations often require the adoption and personification of an alternate identity; this aspect of a web-based operation, then, fits into the above definition of a “deep cover” operation. Therefore, web-based undercover operations are unique in that they fit both definitions for short term and “deep cover” operations. In 2007, Internet Crimes Against Children [ICAC] task forces were instituted nationwide. The Department of Justice funds these task forces, which represent approximately three-thousand law enforcement and prosecutorial agencies across the nation, whether local, state, or federal. ICAC task forces specifically target criminals using the internet for child exploitation or child pornography. Approximately 25% of the arrests made by ICAC task forces are a result of webbased undercover operations (Mitchell et. al., 2010). Online undercover operations are generally short-term operations beginning in internet chat rooms or through social media. As with the other forms of undercover operations, the officers involved in these online undercover operations receive specific training for the position. However, many note that the training is lacking and often the more specialized training for niche aspects of the online operations are geared toward child pornography and leave other areas behind (Tetzlaff-Bemiller, 2011). While this study does not elaborate on the effects of online undercover operations, the shorter operation lengths and ability to conduct the operation remotely provide safeguards frommany common psychological issues that plague traditional undercover officers. Although online
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