Crime pictures

Citation

(2002), "Crime pictures", Work Study, Vol. 51 No. 7. https://doi.org/10.1108/ws.2002.07951gaf.002

Crime pictures

Crime pictures

We know that "the balance of power" shifts between the criminal and the law enforcement agencies. Agencies adopt a variety of means to help them identify suspects and to prove guilt – whenever it is appropriate they use technology to help in this process. There are, of course, firms that specialise in supplying such technology – sometimes the technology is specific, more often it is a generic technology that has specific application within the law enforcement field.

ImageWare Systems, based in San Diego in the USA is a leader in software solutions for digital imaging, biometrics, and secure credentials and applies its core technology to create secure identification systems for airports, universities, government agencies and private businesses. It also applies this technology to the specific needs of law enforcement agencies. Through its ID product line, ImageWare allows its customers to quickly capture, search, retrieve and share digital photographs and criminal history records on stand alone, networked or Web-based platforms.

It recently unveiled a new weapon in the fight against crime. This one takes advantage of improvements in technology – and especially in the portability of technology. This new product – Pocket CCS – gives field officers and special investigative units instant access to digital "mugshots" and related data from their ImageWare Crime Capture System (CCS) via a handheld device. Now officers have a portable tool that holds over 3,000 records to facilitate the search for a suspect and assist in providing positive identification on the spot.

Of course it is not surprising that law enforcement is adopting wireless technology. They have to exploit technology wherever it gives them "an edge" (and can be shown to be cost effective). The evolution to portable handheld devices is a natural step which recognises the portability and convenience of such devices – especially now they have been refined to the point where their speed and memory capacity makes them useful computers instead of simply sophisticated diaries.

CCS allows law enforcement agencies to capture, store and retrieve digital photographs, criminal records and information relating to suspects, all within a single, centralised database. Additional functionality includes the ability to create digital "photo lineups" and to search their criminal database for "distinguishing marks" such as specific scars or tattoos. Even facial recognition technology is available.

To find out more, visit www.iwsinc.com/