Technology and Communication

Computerized communication within law enforcement has and will continue to improve law enforcement as the technology is implemented and utilized within these agencies. The utilization of such devices as mobile data terminals (MDT’s) has given the average patrol officer access to enormous amounts of information. Even in 1979, Computer and technology were said to “have the potential to aid in criminal justice activities through the rapid communication of accurate and complete information, and perhaps a more rational approach to decision-making” (Colton, 1979. P.19). Now in 2014, the computers and

Biometrics technology aims at utilizing major and distinctive characteristics such as behavioral or biological, for the sake of positively indentifying people. With the help of a combination of hardware and specific identifying sets of rules, a basic human attribute, automated biometric recognition mimics to distinguish and categorize other people as individual and unique. But the challenges surrounding biometrics are great as well.

The digital image of the face of a person can be matched against a record of other images by using face recognition software. In case that some of the images in the database go with the digitized image, the owner is reported about it by the system. Automatic face recognition has been studied and investigated extensively since 1990s and its usage is turning out to be no-nonsense in the present times. Although a number of automatic face recognition applications are relatively agreeable and harmless (access regulation to armaments, currency, illegal proof, nuclear equipment/supplies etc), there are still several dangers of face recognition systems that include violation of privacy and civil liberties, unrestrained exploitation, identity theft, illegal use of database, free access to personal data on social media etc. (Agre, 2001).

Police databases and offense reports have been improved by technology and have enhanced law enforcement organizations’ ability to function. One type of police database is a fingerprint databases that

I concur with you on the use of biometrics by the government, and especially facial recognition to apprehend criminals. The recent rise in criminal cases can be halted if such a system is deployed. Biometrics can never go wrong and is in fact one of the most accurate ways of identifying people. If the government can be able to launch a system that can capture personal specifications, it can be really helpful.

Biometrics is a method of identifying an individual based on characteristics that they possess, typically physiological features such as a fingerprint, hand, iris, retina, face, voice, and even DNA. Some methods of biometrics security even use multiple physiological features or multimodal biometrics to provide superior security than a single form of biometrics can provide. Why are biometrics important in the field of information security? Biometrics provide a remarkable amount of security for information because biometrics are unique to each person, and thus cannot be lost, copied, or shared with another individual. This security allows for biometrics to provide a means to reliability authenticate personnel. The importance of biometrics can be further divided into the history of biometrics and why it was devised, past implementations of biometrics, current implementations of biometrics, and future implementations of biometrics.

All biometric systems do have a potential weakness associated with it. Unlike passwords and pin codes which can be changed easily, fingerprints cannot be altered. Should the stored digital copy be stolen and used for fraudulent transactions, the user would have little recourse to fix the situation as they cannot change their prints. They would be unable to use any biometric fingerprint scanner in the future as there will always be doubts and concerns about the authenticity of their prints.

Technology in itself is an innovation that should be introduced into all police departments across America. There are numerous types of technology available to criminal justice system officials that was not available in the past. For example: Body worn cameras, through-the-wall radar, automated license plate recognition (ALPR), social media, high output LED, facial recognition, GPS tagging in vehicle systems and roof top cameras, also called data driven approach to crime and traffic safety, DDACTS (Solar, 2015). All of these technologies are a great added asset to the criminal justice system to help combat crime, but predictive analytics, also known as predictive policing, is an innovation that should be implemented into every police department because it can stop crime before it takes place.

New technology that can aid law enforcement and the criminal justice system could include the improved smart radio that law enforcement can utilize on a daily basis. The smart radios will detect traffic congestion on one frequency and will quickly switch to another. This is one application among many to the smart radio’s advantage over the traditional radio. The traditional radio is a more expensive model being composed of mostly analog parts. The smart radio takes advantage of the new age digital technology making it less expensive and capable of being paralleled to that of a small computer. This will allow multiple applications besides simple multi-channel communications. The disadvantage of such technology is that it will be only as smart as the software that drives it. (Technology, 2009)

Face recognition is another biometric technology. Face recognition uses the same technology that iris recognition uses. For face recognition, a camera takes several images of a person to find out who it is. Face recognition differs from all of the other biometric technologies because the person that is in the picture does not have to cooperate with the process. In all of the other technologies it requires the people to actively participate in the process. In face recognition, the image can be taken without the person even knowing that it took place.

The automated Fingerprint Identification System is also known as the AFIS within the law enforcement division (FBI, 2010). This system is an important element in the criminal justice system as some of its features encompass the storing of data, encoding, and fingerprint and facial comparison through graphics and other techniques. Law officials many centuries ago in the pursuit of positively identifying someone suspected of guilt have long used fingerprints techniques. Fingerprinting is also used in branches of our government, and in the Pentagon, the authentication method of fingerprints is used permit access to specified zones inside the building. Fingerprints are an effective and very precise method of identification purposes that does not pose

Technological innovation has the potential to dramatically improve both the efficiency and the effectiveness of the criminal justice system; but it also has the potential to divert critical resources away from more traditional crime prevention and police strategies that may actually make us safer, without the negative side effects (e.g. erosion of personal freedom, increased public distrust, emphasis on coercive control, etc). Recent changes in the technology area generally – and in the area of information technology in particular – have been so dramatic and profound that they deserve special attention and critical review. As we demonstrate in this article, it is important to consider new technology developed to support crime prevention generally

Technology has become the bedrock for different parts of the correction system. The main force of expenditures and study in the corrections field is for the use of monitoring offenders. Different technologies that allow for better control pf the offenders can save lives and help prevent new crimes from emerging. The point of these technologies is to reduce the chance of recidivism by deterring criminals from behaviors that they may commit if otherwise left to their own devices. “The role of staff in the correctional institutional environment will never be obsolete but the use of technology can enhance and enable staff to perform their jobs more efficiently and in a safer and more secure way.” (Mannix 2) There is also an increase use of

Improved accuracy and improved convenience are two of the biggest benefits of biometric technology for personal identification. First, unlike passwords or PIN numbers, which can be used by anyone who knows the required information, biometrics looks at a

Biometrics is used in many places and there is a bright future for them. Coca Cola has recently replaced time card system with hand scanning machines. Finger print scanners are being used in many states of the US. They have been used to trace social welfare fraud. An iris pattern identification system is being used in Cook County, Illinois to ensure that right people are released from jail. ATM machines have been installed with finger scanners to prevent theft and fraud in Indiana (Jain, 2005).