Social media has been incorporated into almost everything today – phones, news, businesses, politics. Now, police work can be added to that list. 

NBC reported that police departments across the country are turning to social media, and specifically YouTube, to help solve crimes. 

In Prince George’s County, NBC reports that police use YouTube as their own television channel to reach people directly.

The department will often post full news conferences online with surveillance video and mug shots to get the information out to the public, Julie Parker, the spokesman for the Prince George’s County Police Department, told NBC.

After a flash mob robbed a Germantown 7-Eleven, Montgomery County police posted the surveillance video on YouTube, and viewers were able to help identify who was involved, according to NBC. 

Capt. Paul Starks, a spokesperson for the county police department, told NBC that videos can be helpful because you can see the person move and walk, characteristics that are sometimes identifiable to people. 

According to USA Today, more than 40 police departments across the country – ranging from Baltimore, to Houston, to Minneapolis -- are using YouTube as a source to communicate with the public and solve crimes.