A special team builds trust with teens to prevent crimes both online and in real life.

In Denmark, fighting cybercrime sometimes looks like playing Counter-Strike. Since 2022, a special unit of the Danish National Police has taken its patrols online — streaming games, chatting with teens, and even answering questions live on Twitch.

The team, known as Politiets Online Patrulje (POP), now has over 787,000 followers across platforms like TikTok, Discord, Instagram, and Twitch, according to Danish media.

The 12-member unit was launched in response to a steep rise in digital crimes targeting children and adolescents. These include everything from grooming and image-based abuse to fraud and harassment. The team’s primary mission is to meet youth where they already are — online — and earn their trust.

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Inside their digital operations room, gaming setups sit beside a cozy lounge corner for TikTok videos.

Officers are known not by names, but by numbers, making it easier for young users to interact without intimidation. Their weekly Twitch Q&A streams run for up to five hours, with hundreds of questions pouring in — from bike helmet rules to how digital blackmail works.

Police explained that while traditional officers might play football with kids on the street, his team plays Fortnite or Minecraft instead. "Even if young people don't meet a police officer in real life, they can meet us online and talk about what they're going through," one officer was quoted as saying.

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The strategy works. By late 2024, POP had opened over 260 cases based on online leads, many involving children who feared speaking to parents or traditional authorities. Some teens admitted they hadn’t told anyone about serious incidents like sextortion or grooming — fearing punishment or loss of their social accounts.

Adapting to platforms like TikTok wasn’t easy. The team had to navigate privacy concerns, platform norms, and public expectations of police conduct. Officers spent months drafting internal guidelines on tone, language, and ethics before launching.

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Crucially, the team embraces youth culture and language in order to meet children on their own terms. That means using slang, memes, and humor strategically — without sacrificing credibility. The goal is to shrink the cultural gap between young users and law enforcement.

“We’re not here to be influencers,” said one officer. “We’re here to make the internet a safer place for the next generation.”
The unit covers the entire country and might be expanded if necessary.