Social media is a new reality in policing and an unfounded threat directed at Notre Dame College School in Welland earlier this week is an example of that, says Niagara Regional Police spokesperson Const. Phil Gavin.

On Wednesday, uniform officers and the high school's resource officer began an investigation into alleged social media threats toward the facility on Smith Street.

During the course of the investigation, officers liaised with school administrative staff and heard allegations by current students that a former student had made threats against the school on social media, police said in a news release on Friday.

The former student was located and was "very co-operative and forthright" when contacted by police, who also said the allegations made of a threat were false.

This was followed by misinformation being spread that continued to "confuse and compound the matter," the NRP said in its release.

It was determined that there were never any threats and that the allegations were unfounded.

In an interview on Friday, Gavin said the alleged threats were shared "almost accidentally" and involved the former student posting something about a date and time that raised concerns.

A helpful tool in today's digital age, Facebook and other similar sites can also cause problems in investigations.

"Social media can have a huge impact on policing," said Gavin, adding it can "give a lot of people voices" who take the information they spread from unofficial sources and spread inaccuracies.

"They can say whatever they want without recourse," said Gavin.

"That leads to all kinds of issues," he continued, also saying the NRP deals regularly with harassment and other threats on the Internet between members of the public.

"You've got to think before you post," said Gavin, also explaining that local police frequently "make arrests based on social media activity."

In an email to parents and guardians, Notre Dame principal Ken Griepsma said nothing in the graduate's initial post indicated a threat to the school community, but further social media messaging between students "introduced the idea that there was a specific threat to the Notre Dame College School community."

Police were called in out of an "abundance of caution," he wrote in his email.

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He said staff and administration of Notre Dame College School are thankful for the police's investigation but are also committed to safety and are grateful to the students who brought the situation to the appropriate people.

"It is apparent, in this case, that social media took on a life of its own between students and an initial post on a social media site was misinterpreted to indicate a non-existent threat," he said.