Social Media in Civil Protection and Disaster Management

Social media is neither a panacea nor a threat – it is a reality. This was impressively demonstrated at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. In addition to the pandemic, the WHO spoke of an infodemic, i.e. an overabundance of true and false information that accompanied the global fight against the pandemic and in some cases made it more difficult (WHO 2025).

For example, digitally produced false information that is disseminated at a low threshold can influence people’s practical actions with great reach and speed. In the case of attacks such as the one on 22 July 2016 at the Olympic Shopping Centre (OEZ) in Munich or on 20 December 2024 at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, it was observed that people reacted to so-called ‘phantom crime scenes’ – i.e. places without an actual crime – by fleeing and injuring themselves. These phantom crime scenes were partly influenced by false information in social media (Süddeutsche Zeitung 2017).

For emergency services, these risks mean increased analysis and verification efforts. A need that is met by innovative formats such as digital operational support units like the VOST THW.

The Virtual Operations Support Team (VOST) of the Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW) was established in 2016 and represents an outstanding example of the structured use of social media, open source intelligence (OSINT), and geoinformation systems in civil protection. As Germany’s first entirely volunteer-based digital unit in emergency response, it now consists of over 60 specialized volunteers. Through its virtual work in data analysis and visualization, VOST can be deployed rapidly both nationally and internationally – during floods, natural disasters, earthquakes, major public events, or pandemic situations.

The core tasks of VOST THW focus on two main areas: digital situational assessment and digital situational mapping. In digital situational assessment, publicly available information is systematically collected, verified, and contextualized for the operational setting. Digital situational mapping involves visualizing relevant data on digital maps, using tools such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS).

VOST is organized in a decentralized manner – its virtual responders work independently of location and are therefore largely resilient to local infrastructure failures. Through cooperation with other VOST entities, a robust network of digital support exists that can be activated quickly and flexibly when needed.

Public safety authorities and organizations (known in German as BOS – Behörden und Organisationen mit Sicherheitsaufgaben) are increasingly faced with the challenge of adapting their public communication to the realities of the digital age. Beyond speed, a digital environment demands crisis communication that is as dialogue-oriented and human-centered as possible. If official social media accounts are used for public relations in everyday situations but fall silent during crises or disasters, this can lead to an information gap. For this reason, social media strategies have become particularly important for crisis communication. When used effectively, they can also be considered tactical tools in emergency response. In Germany, civil protection organizations generally enjoy a high level of public trust, providing a strong foundation upon which crisis communication efforts can build.

Figure 3: Seeing through the Data Stream: the VOST at THW (©THW)