THE POLICE DATA CHALLENGE Copyright Policing Insight/Cognyte 2023 “Because if somebody, for example, is a victim of county lines drugs exploitation, then if they’re not already a victim of child sexual abuse or exploitation, there’s a good chance they’re soon going to be, or are at elevated risk of becoming one. “The resources in ROCUs weren’t talking to each other. They weren’t sharing data, they weren’t sharing intelligence. They were oſten looking at the same offenders, and victims were represented across lots of different threat types.” Whatever the nature and scale of the investigation – from carrying out a ‘data wash’ or analytical support on local inquiries, up to complex international investigations – having as many parts of the data jigsaw as possible helps the TOEX team to complete the puzzle for investigators. “We don’t have to have a magic marker in the sand before we get interested; we want to know about anything to do with organised exploitation,” added Det Ch Supt Thacker. “And we want to help investigators, wherever they sit across the tiers of law enforcement, with the jobs that are beyond their capacity and capability that they currently have.” Recognising the potential for AI and automation The potential for new digital technology to enhance the data analytics process has been recognised by forces in the UK and internationally, and across a range of crime types. For Former West Midlands Chief Constable Sir David Thompson, previously the UK lead for developing the National Common Intelligence Application (NCIA), it was the successful application of natural language processing that proved particularly effective in targeting modern slavery and human trafficking. “When you start applying natural language processing to key words, phrases, and things that might be associated with human trafficking, you pull out of the woodwork tons of intelligence that actually begins to show links, and a broader pattern,” explained Sir David. “Some of that ‘proof of concept’ work – particularly on modern slavery and human trafficking – threw up tons more groups and clusters of individuals than we’d have ever seen on a traditional model.” Many law enforcement agencies are still in the early stages of identifying how to maximise the greatest leverage from automation, AI and machine learning in terms of data analytics, but their potential is increasingly recognised. New Zealand Police has been something of a pioneer in the use of technology; James Foubister, who works as a Principal Adviser alongside the force’s Manager for Emerging Tech, Inspector Carla Gilmore, describes the forces use of AI and machine learning as “very, very nascent”. “There are bits and pieces, things in development, but we’re very early in that process,” he explained. “There are huge opportunities for large language models to start ingesting and making sense of data, and then re-categorising using recursive things like machine learning and AI, or clever generative AI, to start actually generating answers instead of just generating results.” Detective Chief Superintendent Kate Thacker