I-plods

So-called 'i-plods' are to be recruited by British police forces to combat cyber crime (story in this FT article, i-plods mentioned in final paragraph). 'I-plod' is a nickname, of course. The word 'plod' is often forced into stories about the police; indeed, a plod is a nickname for a police officer, and the plod is used to refer to the police in general. Plod is a mildly derogatory term, or a term used humorously (see this old post of mine).

 

The word comes from Mr Plod, a Toytown policeman in Enid Blyton's Noddy series, which she was writing in the 1950s.