Details about violent criminals and sex offenders living in Saskatchewan will soon be made public online, the provincial government says.

On Friday, Justice Minister Frank Quennell said that while his department is still working out the details, the site will likely include the names and photographs of criminals considered likely to reoffend, the community in which they live and a history of their crimes.

Quennell said the idea is to increase public safety. Safeguards will be put into place to ensure information on the new web site does not prompt people to take the law into their own hands, he said.

"We don't want to encourage vigilante justice," he said.

However, concerns have been raised about how people might misuse such information.

An apartment building in Moose Jaw was recently vandalized after rumors spread that a sex offender had moved into the complex. It turned out the man was just visiting the city.

Terry Coleman,  Moosejaw's police chief and president of the Saskatchewan Association of Police Chiefs, says his organization generally supports the idea but has some concerns.

"The bigger question is whether making any sort of public notice actually makes a difference at the end of the day," he said. "Or does it satisfy some sort of emotional desire to have this information?  Frankly, there's been no research on this."