  Ideas from forensic linguistics are now being used frequently in Natural
Language Processing (NLP), using machine learning techniques. While the role of
forensic linguistics was more benign earlier, it is now being used for purposes
which are questionable. Certain methods from forensic linguistics are employed,
without considering their scientific limitations and ethical concerns. While we
take the specific case of forensic linguistics as an example of such trends in
NLP and machine learning, the issue is a larger one and present in many other
scientific and data-driven domains. We suggest that such trends indicate that
some of the applied sciences are exceeding their legal and scientific briefs.
We highlight how carelessly implemented practices are serving to short-circuit
the due processes of law as well breach ethical codes.
