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The flip-side of technology is a growing category of tech-savvy criminals.
Such criminals not only know how to utilise technology in criminal activities, but also how to circumvent technical preventative measures.
Crime is ever evolving.
The bank robber of yesteryear caused dramatic scenes like those depicted in John Kiriamiti's book, My Life in Crime.
The tech-savvy robber of today can be a simple guy armed only with a laptop and access passwords to a bank's treasures.
Such trends and other mutations in crime necessitate an anti-crime force that is well-versed in digital technology.
For the Police Force, the challenges are real.
As technology becomes a core part of human life, trying to solve complex crime with stone-age tools won't work any more.
This is a point that deserves attention in the police reform process.
Retrieving data from a wide range of modern devices is becoming part of the vital technical skills in the fight against crime.
From mobile phones, computers, to security surveillance gadgets, the bottom line is concrete evidence.
The burden of proof that comes along with modern technology requires getting the facts and data from the consumer equipment.
In regard to retrieving data as evidence, the trouble is that some policemen find such operations challenging and hence resort to rudimentary methods.
bsurdly, some of the crime scenes are started on the wrong premise and concluded with a common statement: "Police are investigating the matter".
The trouble might not be in the evils of corrupt schemes which hinder comprehensive investigations, but rather in the archaic manner in which investigators handle crime scenes.
Getting it right by police requires clear knowledge of trends in surveillance technology and the associated short-comings.A common case involves CCTV.
In an attempt to control crime, CCTV cameras are installed in public places, homes and in company premises.
However, such measures might not prevent the evil activities of smart criminals who know ways of evading the prying lens of the camera and even how to render CCTV ineffective.
The same case applies to computerised operations. Smart criminals have devised ways of infiltrating homes, premises and companies through digital networks.
Here are a few examples. In one scene, the life of a young celebrity is nipped in the bud through an alleged fall from the balcony of his house. The scene had CCTV monitors, which should have helped tell what happened.
Unless the security surveillance is dysfunctional or disabled, the images captured should have helped unravel the puzzle behind the death of the celebrity.
In another scene, a bank loses millions of shillings and a tech-savvy employee is held as the prime suspect. But the employee may have used digital loopholes in the company networks to siphon the cash.
This is where our police get a score of less than five on a scale of one to 10.
n summary, if part of the training for police has ICT components, then solving crime will be easier. An ill-prepared Police Force is an impediment to tackling complex crimes.
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