A European research project will explore how artificial intelligence (AI) could be used to support crime detection and prevention.
The PRESERVE project will look at ways to support law enforcement agencies in tackling crimes including sexual abuse, extremism, and drug trafficking through automating the collection and analysis of large amounts of data from across the internet.
This could include sources such as chat rooms, social media, and the dark web – identifying key communities and users involved in activities such as hate speech, human trafficking or terrorism, and using this information to better allocate police resources.
The €6 million project, funded by the European Commission’s Horizon Europe programme, involves partners from 8 countries across Europe – including researchers, law enforcement agencies from Greece, Spain, Romania and Czechia, and industrial partners with expertise in technology and software development.
As part of the project, researchers from Bournemouth University (BU) will develop the digital tools and AI algorithms to help monitor trends and detect crimes – particularly targeting the prevention and investigation of child sexual abuse, hate speech, extremist activities, and illegal drug trafficking.
The team will also look at ways to make the process fair, ethical and transparent to avoid potential bias.
Professor in Data Science and Intelligent Systems Hamid Bouchachia is leading the project at BU.
He said: “Through PRESERVE we are investigating ways to fight various types of crime that are instigated and amplified in cyberspace. Having the privilege of working with law enforcement authorities across Europe, including Europol, will support this exciting work in having real-world impact, resulting in ethical AI and machine learning-based technology that assists in combating cybercrimes towards the common good of the society.”
The project will run for three years and aims to embed the tools in an information management system to support European law enforcement authorities in collaborating more effectively and securely, without compromising the privacy of citizens.
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