Computer-based data analysis techniques: The potential application to crime investigation in cyber space

Abstract

Collecting the most versatile information about individuals and their storing in different databases represent the reality of the contemporary society. The growth in the quantity of information has exceeded man’s power to process and analyze them in a traditional manner, making computerized techniques and means, especially data mining techniques, a necessity for these purposes. Although widely applied in the public administration and economy domain, computerized data search and comparison so far have not reached their full potential in the area of crime investigation and forensics. Law enforcement agencies and forensic laboratories collect large quantities of various data originating not only from a person’s criminal activities, but his/her social activities as well (i.e., blogs, social media, etc.). The very success of a crime investigation depends to a large extent on the availability of relevant data (referring to persons, objects or events) and finding often hidden relationship among them. Web space, especially social media, is invaluable source of data and often the first place crime investigators refer to in order to obtain relevant information.