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Liverpool City Council staff are taking on the role of Big Brother after being given the power to snoop on people on sites such as Facebook for "enforcement purposes".
The review of staff at Liverpool City Council found that the use of social networking sites was "appropriate" and those using these mediums was "doing so proprely".
A recommendation by the Office of Surveillance Commissioners (OSC) prompted the review which cleared officers to take a Big Brother role in their detective work.
In the last year the council has used surveillance on 28 occasions for crimes such as sales of alcohol or tobacco to underage teenagers and an exercise about the sale of knives to children.
A report to the Audit and Accounts Committee said: "Preliminary findings (of the review) are that the officers using this medium for enforcement purposes are aware of how they should conduct themselves and use social networking sites appropriately."
Councillor Liam Robinson, Chair of the Committee, defended the decision and said there were "clear instructions" to staff about how they can use Facebook and Twitter.
He added: "We are aware that there is concern about official bodies carrying out any form of surveillance.
"But we have stringent policies which are constantly reviewed to take account of new developments including the growth in social networks, such as Facebook, and changes in legislation.
"What our policy makes clear is that we do not have a Snoopers Charter and there are clear instructions on what authorisations are needed before officers use these sites for potential enforcement purposes.
"Generally, with all forms of surveillance we have to balance civil liberties considerations against the gathering of evidence in areas, such as shops selling drinks to underage teenagers, where there is a lot of public concern.
"The record demonstrates quite clearly that we only use surveillance when there is justification for it, often resulting in convictions, and that we are abiding by the regulations relating to it."
The report is part of a regular review of the use of Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA).
Councillor Robinson added: "These are examples of where it is very appropriate to use surveillance in areas where it is the only realistic way of gaining evidence.
"Often it is not appreciated that convictions result because this work has been undertaken."
Among the convictions in the last year were those of two men who were convicted of selling more than half a million pounds worth of fake DVDs, CDs and computer games.
Also a man received a suspended prison sentence and was banned from the city’s markets for selling counterfeit cigarettes.
