THE POLICE DATA CHALLENGE Copyright Policing Insight/Cognyte 2023 “We had ethical oversight boards made up of independent and really knowledgeable human rights academics, so we weren’t doing this in a gung-ho way; we were doing it in a really thoughtful way. But there’s a risk that it still gets misrepresented.” Iain Donnelly Former West Midlands Superintendent And it’s a challenge that former West Midlands Police Superintendent Iain Donnelly knows well, having played a leading role in the development of the National Data Analytics Solution (NDAS) project, which used advanced data analytics to provide actionable insights focusing on areas such as gun and knife crime and modern slavery. “We were looking at over 25 years’ worth of data in a very cold-blooded, objective kind of way, and we had a lot of governance wrapped around it,” explained Iain. “We had ethical oversight boards made up of independent and really knowledgeable human rights academics, so we weren’t doing this in a gung-ho way; we were doing it in a really thoughtful way. But there’s a risk that it still gets misrepresented.” While some in policing will claim that ‘data is data’ and cannot itself be inherently biased, Iain is well aware of the frustrations of what becomes a circular argument. “The police are trying to come at it from a point of view of saying, ‘Listen, we need to use data in an innovative way, and we need to harness the opportunities offered to us by the most innovative technology’. At the same time, you’ve got people who will say, ‘Well, police data, by definition, is always going to disadvantage certain people’. And the argument just goes round and round in circles.” Ethical frameworks However, the debates around data ethics are not just around inherent bias, and not just taking place in the UK. Issues such as ownership of data and the proportionate use of technology are also being considered and addressed around the world. In New Zealand Police, Inspector Carla Gilmore’s role within the service as Manager for Emergent Tech was partly established in response to public concerns and negative reactions to the Clearview AI case and the use of facial recognition. “It caused us to sit back and consider how we make decisions on new technology, particularly from an ethical human rights perspective, which we didn’t have a set process to do,” explained Insp Gilmore. One result of the work of Insp Gilmore and her team has been the launch of a framework on the trial or adoption of new policing technologies, which – alongside existing principles on the safe and effective use of data analytics, and the country’s algorithmic charter – provides a suite of policies and guidance covering issues such as governance, ethics and transparency in relation to the police use of data and new technology. Former West Midlands Police Superintendent Iain Donnelly