Justice and Public Safety

Remote classes and lax verification protocols have made it easier for criminals to impersonate students and disappear when the financial aid checks arrive, so colleges are implementing new verification protocols.

Several superintendents this week sent letters to families after being informed by the FBI and CISA that multiple Nihilistic Violent Extremist (NVE) groups are trying to coerce children into dangerous behavior on camera.

After last month's jailbreak by 10 Orleans Parish detainees, some civic and elected leaders say it's time the city loosened the reins on the Police Department's use of facial recognition technology.

Thousands of crypto ATMs are popping up in physical spaces, and many law enforcement officials argue that the convenience of the machines allows criminals to easily scam people and launder money.

At least three Santa Fe-area organizations are working together to install the camera on Tesuque Peak, where it will send a live feed to a California monitoring center with artificial intelligence to identify wildland blazes.

The city’s police chief has asked that officials approve the purchase of new cameras that would record vehicle license plate numbers on major corridors in city limits. A data sharing policy is in the works.

The state’s comptroller blames the problem on New York’s homeland security agency, and urges it to provide more guidance. NG911 is among the main drivers of the public safety technology industry.

A cybersecurity expert and digital forensics investigator recommends that parents turn off chat functions on apps their children are using if possible and warn them not to share personal information.

LiveView Technologies is releasing a new surveillance camera feature that uses AI to detect actions and determine how to proceed, in some cases prompting AI voice warnings for common issues such as illegal dumping.

A crypto billionaire with a reputation for funding public safety is asking city officials to greenlight a $9.4 million gift to create a new, state-of-the-art technology hub for the city's police force.

Spokane may soon outlaw kiosks that allow people to purchase crypto without going to well-known digital marketplaces — and according to law enforcement, have become a tool for scammers.

Prepared, launched in 2019, is gaining ground with its assistive AI tools for emergency dispatchers. Andreessen Horowitz again invested in the young company, known for its livestreaming and translation tech.

Flock’s Nova platform for law enforcement reportedly used data gained from breaches. In response, the gov tech supplier is defending its product evaluation process and says it won’t use information from the dark web.

The city is calling for tech companies to send proposals for such a program, via a request for qualifications. In it, officials suggest drones might be first on scene to 911 calls, better informing emergency crews.

The technology is increasingly being used by state and local police agencies, and lawmakers are considering a proposal that would limit and regulate their acquisition and deployment.

Officials in the central Pennsylvania county have sent a warning to residents that their information could have been put at risk by a “data privacy event.” They are probing an incident potentially involving civil court data.

Flock Safety, a license plate reading tech firm that recently bought a drone company, is taking heat over the data sources for its new platform. It’s not the only law enforcement technology attracting concern.

Veritone has inked a public safety redaction deal with Technology North, which hires people on the autism spectrum to help remove sensitive data from evidence, the latest move in gov tech to help neurodivergent people.