Among them—it’s a secure, professional networking resource.

LinkedIn is a fantastic tool for law enforcement professionals. This online community offers a more sophisticated sharing environment, greater privacy controls and less concern that your data can be compromised by the carelessness of others.

Following are three reasons why police officers should consider signing up:

1. It allows you to connect with other professionals around the world: Connecting with others on LinkedIn works much like Facebook where it must be accepted by the recipient of the request. The real ah-ha moment comes after you’ve connected with a few people and look at LinkedIn’s network statistics. It’s then that you might realize that with about 75 first-degree connections, you could be linked to a million or more at the third degree, all around the world. Think about the power of this if you wanted to make a career move or need information about an issue you’re dealing with in your police force. It’s also surprisingly easy to connect with leaders in your profession with whom you might not otherwise have such an opportunity. Next time you attend training with police professionals from around the world, make a point of finding them on LinkedIn and stay connected.

2. It offers great group opportunities: With LinkedIn Groups you can join other police professionals and join conversations or receive updates. There are dozens of LinkedIn groups representing police associations, publications (click here to join Law Officer’s group) or ones organized around certain topics (like social media use in law enforcement). With LinkedIn Answers, you can find answers to questions on just about any topic or even establish yourself as an expert on a topic by providing answers.

3. It’s your online resume: You may never have to send a paper resume again. As you progress through your career, edit as you go and your professional history is always up to date. That is one of the nicest benefits of LinkedIn. It helps you keep track of you.

This Social Media Quick Tip was previously published on LawOfficer.com.