YOUR pal the Skipper is not the dabbest of hands with modern social media, but years spent rubbing shoulders with journalists has taught me a thing or two about libel law and the dangers of misinformation.

With that in mind, I was concerned but not surprised to see the police warning Facebook users to be careful what they post after a totally innocent man in Falmouth was ‘outed’ as having taken photographs of children at Sainsbury's last week.

Although interviewed and utterly cleared by police – looking through his new camera they found he had been taking pictures of his wife – the incident could have veered into witch-hunt territory after pictures showing the man’s number plate were circulated online.

This is just the latest in a string of similar posts noticed by me, many of which seem to lay the cause for such naming-and-shaming at the door of the police – or Tory politicians who have cut force budgets – for failing to adequately address the fears of the community.

But it has to be hoped that the have-a-go-heroes who eschew traditional policing will at least have seen the police announcement clearing the man, or there could yet be terrible repercussions.

And it’s not just the innocent out taking pictures who should worry. If you post, share, or retweet such unfounded accusations you leave yourself open to all sorts of trouble, and libel costs for wrongly identifying someone as a sex offender is only the least of it.

Anyone reading of the recent death of Dave Curnow would have been rightly shocked and saddened at what happened, but anyone sharing a post identifying those charged with his killing, and calling them ‘murderers’ could potentially face charges of contempt of court.

The word ‘allegedly’ may annoy readers as it is liberally sprinkled through court copy, but it is a surefire way for journalists to avoid being jailed for interfering with a trial before its logical conclusion.

I’ll leave you with this thought: Remember the paediatrician hounded from her home after being wrongly identified during the Sun’s name-and-shame campaign? Perhaps you should, next time your finger hovers over that ‘share’ button.