COMPUTER COPS

Through high technology the computer cop was born and continues to increase. It is this computer technology which enables the police to catch the criminals so quickly.

A fine example is, during the recent riots in Britain, the first pictures of the suspects came through, while the looting was still going on. In the following hours, hundreds of pictures were sent to police websites and from there to the photo-sharing website Flickr which gave exposure to millions.

Thugs who thought they would get away with it were caught in no time at all. Technology also enabled the computer cop to filter through the social networking sites. Rioters, who used it to organize looting, it turned against them.

Previously to this high technology, police would have to pull in thousands of suspects and it would have taken weeks if not months to take statements, check them through and find the guilty ones. Today with the Law Enforcement Computers it cut this lengthy work down to almost nothing. Furthermore, they have the evidence on cop software which hardly can be argued with.

Nowadays, computers in law enforcement give almost an instant result. Already there were 3,000 arrests within a week. In the aftermath of those riots, police were given keyboards which will be as affective as truncheons and the result will be quicker.

CCTV used to send grainy pictures and had to be re-loaded with films. Computer experts achieved pin-sharp images and they are sent out 24-hours. CCTV network is also increasing like the computer cops. There are around 1.8 million cameras in the UK constantly recoding all the movements. According to the police they record everyone about 70 times a day. Civil rights groups estimate that it is 300 in central London.

As a matter of fact, Britain has more than any other European country. Campaigners for privacy are not happy but it is better to be safe than sorry. It is a great help to the police to catch the criminals and with delivered digital photographs it is not possible to plead not guilty.

In London alone 500 computer cops are working through the 20,000 hours of CCTV footage to identify the people who were looting and burning. There is also another great technology which enables the police to "back-tracking". It means it follows a suspect when he/she moves around different locations.

Another advantage of a new technology gives police information of criminals who covered their faces with a hoods, cloths or masks. This new technology has face recognition and cuts through all these disguises. The police must have been in their delight having received this technology.

One fine example was the nail-bomber. When the experts sifted through the debris, they found a fragment of the holdall. With that evidence they went through the images and identified a suspect carrying a bag prior to the attacks.

The security industry is now so highly sophisticated that their cameras, when filming sports events, are capable of tracking brand logo on your clothing.

A CCTV expert stated that the technology is getting better and better. The latest cameras are producing broadcast standard digital images. CCTV has also a higher capacity than the previous ones.

One mystery will remain a secret. Blackberry supposed to be encrypted and untraceable but they were intercepted by the police. Because of this assumed security, Blackberry was used by gang members sending messages to their members by the scores.

The National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA) was established four years ago. It is purely there to reinforce law and order through new technology. It is training officers to find information from laptops, mobiles, sat-naves, loyalty cards, PlayStations and other devices. They also can track criminals from contacts and records of voice-mails, texts, calls received and made. Great treasure chests were found during the riots when the police seized mobile phones.

The NPIA was also part of the development of a mobile fingerprinting device. It is now used by 28 police forces. The gadget brings the result within two minutes. It is very useful for the officers on the beat.

Roadside cameras are also a great help to identify number plates of stolen cars or cars which had been part of a crime scene. This wonderful invention takes five seconds to alert the nearest police station or patrol. That system enables the officers to follow the suspicious vehicles from one camera to the other. They are a great time saving devices.

SUMMARY:

However, in spite of all these great computer law enforcement computers, CCTV, computer cops, computer expert and technology there is still a need of policemen on the streets. Technology, in the 21st century, only cuts a lot of time, hard work and enables the police to bring the criminals quicker to justice.

Although, it can't prevent the crimes but at least the criminals are caught in no time at all. Hopefully, it will sink in, in a criminal's mind, that there is no or little chance to escape. The great work which 'Big Brother' has done catching these rioters and looters quick and it should be a good lesson.

Never mind the Privacy Campaigners. They should think about what would happen if all these technologies were not about. From a start the police would not be able to cope with the crime wave these days with the methods of the olden days.

All is needed now to get the justice right and give these criminals the punishment they deserve