Future of Policing Proposal Essay

Policing is not just keeping the peace in today’s society. Police officers have several responsibilities and also new technology to learn. New technology helps law enforcement preform a better job in communication, crime solving, decreasing crime and making communities a better place to live for citizens and their families. Biometrics and GPS tracking are two useful technologies’ that have made the police able to catch criminals, and solve crimes quicker and more sufficient. Biometrics modalities used by law enforcement is fingerprints, DNA (Blood), and patterns of the voice and faces of victims. Then GPS Tracking helps law enforcement keep track of other police officers, or GPS can be used to tract a suspect if he or she is running away from the law. There are many vehicles that come standard with the GPS system that makes it easier for law enforcement to track a car if it has been stolen the owner. The future of the GPS tracking system may be identifying as leaving things like, the satellites, cameras, computers that will have been powerful, all in all just leaving all the â€Å"complicated† technology in the past. In today’s time you need three working satellites in order to get a good enough signal for your GPS, and even then you it might take a minute or two to get an accurate destined location. There are places all around the world where you cannot get any satellite signal, and even in big cities, it can become very difficult to get signal. â€Å"The world-first approach to visual navigation algorithms, which has been dubbed SeqSLAM (Sequence Simultaneous Localization and Mapping), uses local best match and sequence recognition components to lock in locations. SeqSLAM uses the assumption that you are already in a specific location and tests that assumption over and over  again. For example if I am in a kitchen in an office block, the algorithm makes the assumption I’m in the office block, looks around and identifies signs that match a kitchen. Then if I stepped out into the corridor it would test to see if the corridor matches the corridor in the existing data of the office block lay out. Said by Dr. Michael Milford from Queensland University of Technology (QUT). Biometrics is all the quantifiable biological or behavioral characteristics used for the identification and classification of individuals. Fingerprints are the most common biometric modality used by law enforcement, but there are others. These modalities include deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), voice and facial patterns. Biometrics also consists of all the various technologies used to categorize and recognize human characteristics. Biometric fingerprint scanning works because fingerprints are unique to each individual. People are born with a pattern of ridges and valleys on their fingers. These patterns are created thru a number of genetic and environmental factors. As a unique marker, a skilled analyst or a fingerprint scanner can recognize the patterns and use it to identify the person the fingerprint belongs to. Biometric fingerprint authentication is used to securing access to information and technology. The fingerprint of an authorized user is scanned and kept on record. The user swipes its finger along the scanner and only those with the proper clearance is allowed to enter or have access to the information. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has a biometric system known as Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS). The system is a national fingerprint and criminal history catalog. The system is available to law enforcement officers from the local, state, and federal levels. It allows an agency to makes inquiries 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. IAFIS aids policing organizations in solving and preventing crimes and catching criminals before they break the law again. The system gives law enforcement access to its automatic fingerprint database, its considerable search capacity, electronic picture storage, and allows for the electronic exchange of fingerprints. The system contains the information on over 70  million criminal subjects in its master file along with the fingerprints of 73,000 known and suspected terrorists investigated by the United States and international law enforcement agencies. 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. Gun use and safety is an important issue around the world and especially in the United States. Mytec Technologies are working with American firearms manufacturer Smith & Wesson on a â€Å"smart gun.† The partnership is intended to create a gun that will prevent anyone other than authorized users from shooting the weapon. The focus of the joint venture is to build a programmable handgun which will prevent any accidental shootings. The system will use finger tip sensor on the handle of the gun that will â€Å"read† the fingerprint. It will then convert the fingerprint into a digital medium and compare the newly scanned fingerprint against the authorized directory stored inside the scanner. The weapon will unlock and can be fired if and only if a match is found. An issue yet to be remedied is the control of the user’s biometric data. A database of authorized users will need to be created and kept secured. Will a government agency have to be created to control of this data or will it be under the purview of the users? The second issue which has arisen is how many authorized fingerprints will be allowed per weapon? Should there be a limit or will it be at the owner’s discretion as to how many fingerprints are authorized? These issues must be solved before the technology is allowed to be sold to the public. Being efficient and effective is a must when it comes to policing this includes using any and all forms of modern technology. Relying on technology is a must especially when it comes to the need and the importance of vital information. Since this information can  have an extreme amount of influence on any given the circumstance, it is important that the information being provided is accurate. Biometrics and GPS Tracking are important forms of modern technology that help provide such information such as facial recognition and location of suspects at a very accurate rate. Without the use of modern technology to aid the police with the work they do, providing efficient and effective police work can prove difficult. References Federal Bureau of Investigation. (2014, May 08). Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System. Retrieved from http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/fingerprints_biometrics/iafis Fox News. (2001, January 25). Smart Gun, Smart Solution? Retrieved from http://www.foxnews.com/story/2001/01/25/smart-gun-smart-solution/ Global Security.org. (2011, July 13). Homeland Security Biometrics. Retrieved from http://www.globalsecurity.org/security/stsyems/biometrics.htm