Crime and Crime Prevention

There are two things that happen with IT where crime is concerned. The ability it gives to assist us enhancing police work in solving crimes and the opportunities created from crime. There are now many devices which are used within this process and the two elements are fundamental for IT in crime for the general crime and traffic offenses.

Crime Prevention Enhanced by IT

There are many ways in which IT has helped assist the police work in solving crimes by using very developed technology to help prevent crime all around the world. We need IT to be able to help us identify criminals, especially in big cases such as murder. Some criminals are unaware of what they leave behind and with the help of IT police are able to detect fingerprints or any source of DNA from objects the criminal has come in contact with.

CCTV

Another common aspect used by the police is the use of CCTV cameras. CCTV cameras play an important role in being able to solve crimes as they are in use 24/7 and police can visually see any crime scenes happening or if a criminal has been spotted. They have also developed over the years and are now of a higher quality to give a clearer image which again helps to indentify criminals. Statistics show that in the UK, for every 32 people there is one CCTV camera; this makes people feel safer within their communities but some people disagree with this and believe it is an invasion of privacy.

Police Database

Police use a police database which is a database on criminals. Police enter all the characteristics of a crime onto the database, and it comes up with related crimes and the person or people involved allowing the criminal to be indentified quicker. Also if there are any fingerprints or other DNA samples found when investigating the crime then police can find a match with a past criminal on the database. However it can be difficult when there is a new crime as there would be no DNA they could match it up to, therefore making the process a lot longer to obtain accurate results.

Electronic Tagging

Electronic tagging is an electronic device attached to a person or vehicle for monitoring purposes. For example a tracking offender under house arrest has an alarm system on their tag which is programmed with curfew times and it is set off if the offender leaves their house outside the given times. The tag is then connected to the probation service who is immediately alerted if they leave the given area around their house and this is then transferred directly to the police. Electronic tagging helps with keeping down the number of prisoners. Another way in order to cut down theft is having electronic tags on clothing and other products, meaning that they have to be cancelled before you get out the store and they are cancelled by paying.

Contemporary Issues

A big contemporary issue is the police having ability to get the right to look at browsing history, online activity and email. People could argue that they do not look at personal or private things and they are just searching for anything suspicious to indentify criminals and help the safety of everyone. However some people believe that is in an invasion of privacy and that it is unnecessary to look at all those aspects when they should only be looking at one or two just to check.

Opportunities Created by Crime

The advances of technology have lead to more people using these developments to commit crimes such as hacking and piracy. They are using the use of computers and the internet and can cause many people to be lead into false information and accounts. This can cause many problems and difficulties for people to be involved in, then affecting the whole of society.

Hacking

Hacking has been a big issue for a very long time and it is has always been a problem. Hackers can make a living out of what they do as the more advanced they get the more money and satisfaction they get out of it. Hackers are well aware that is it illegal, however some still manage to never get caught. There have been cases of hackers being able to get into the systems of banks and many of the well known companies and this then causes a problem on a wide scale. 

Viruses

In order to stop hacking and a variety of other things people can access, new software is being created. Alongside hacking are viruses which destroy data, even of individuals. Similarly some people also create viruses for a living as they are able to gain money out of it when people are unaware of it. It takes close to a second for a virus to destroy the contents of your data and it can cause many problems on your computer.

Piracy

Piracy is another big issue that has become more frequent over the recent years as downloading has become widely popular. The material of a CD which you buy does not actually belong to you, you only buy the license to listen or watch the contents it contains. This essentially means that no one else is able to use the CD apart from you. This is also the case of music and when music is bought off iTunes, you are the only person who is able to listen to it and if someone else is listening to it, that is in actual fact, illegal. All types of illegal downloads are piracy. There are many recent cases of websites being shut down due to piracy of films that people from all around the world are able to access for free.

Scopes of Crime and Crime Prevention

The scopes of crime and crime prevention include that the use of IT used in crime enables us to prevent future crimes as criminals are put off by the evidence that can be found. Another reason is because people feel a lot safer because of all the CCTV cameras that are around. Also ID hardware can be chipped so that it can be tracked and traced if ever stolen.

Limitations of Crime and Crime Prevention

The limitations of crime and crime prevention include people feel a lack of privacy due to the amount of CCTV cameras. Also large companies and banks are highly affected from hackers. Finally the developing technology can make it easier for hackers to get into computer systems as there are many new ways which they discover.

My Personal Experience

My own experience I have had is about a year ago when my previous laptop had received a virus. The virus had not affected any of my documents or personal data, however it affected the way in which my computer system worked and it resulted in having to have my whole laptop wiped, meaning I lost all the data stored, including pictures and school work.