Artificial Intelligence in Policing: Useful or Useless?

Hello to all my Digital Law & Order readers, for this week's topic we will be diving into Artificial Intelligence(AI). Starting off you will need to know what User Generated Content(UGC) is. Writer Tricia Christensen defines UGC as content being created and shared by unpaid users of a product, service, etc., rather than by the actual brand or their professional paid creators. Social media platforms including but not limited to Twitter, Instagram, TikTok are huge platforms with digital archives which law enforcement agencies can analyze using AI tools. When it comes to AI in policing UGC can be very useful; it can provide digital evidence(videos, livestreams, posts, etc.), behavioral data, a way to map social networks, and more. 

Now another writer by the name of Marcelo Luis Barbosa dos Santos disagrees and argues that UGC is shaped as well as monetized by platforms. He states that algorithms determine what content is amplified to specific users, platforms profit from user activity, and that the term “user-generated” is a smokescreen for corporate control. What this means in policing context is that; AI may not only analyze what people post, but also what their algorithm amplifies, risk assessments can also be impacted by platform driven visibility, etc. 

Moving on to the positives of UGC in the criminal justice system. It increases transparency and accountability, videos recorded by citizens can show/ expose misconduct so that the system can correct their errors, it can lead to quicker identifications of threats or missing persons, and much more. Now with positives also come negatives. Some of these concerns include but are not limited to, AI systems reinforcing historical biases, targeting marginalized groups, public posts being misinterpreted(sarcastic, slang, etc). 

In the future of criminal justice AI and social media are likely to expand. This gives us a greater need for transparency and regulation when using these tools. There needs to be clear set standards in place when it comes to data use and the protection of citizens rights(privacy, etc). Overall user generated content can be both empowering and risky. While it increases transparency it also adds to the system's surveillance capacity. The future of AI in policing rests on whether technology will aid in bringing justice, or just deepen systemic injustices. 


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