What are the Advantages of Police Digitalization?

Optimizing Operations as the Technology Becomes Available

Here’s a sobering thought: more economic impact is initiated internationally through cybercrime, or “black hat” IT, than through traditional legal tech, or “white hat” IT. Globally, the tech sector is worth over $5 trillion. Cybercrime exacts around $6 trillion a year, and both categories of IT are expected to expand going forward.

For local law enforcement, this is a serious issue. If you’re not up-to-date on technology, associated cybersecurity, and proper application of these innovations throughout the surface area of your department, you’re wide open to be hacked. Criminals that can shut down police surveillance remotely, in a way you can’t follow, will do so.

But beyond unique situations that are relatively rare, police digitalization facilitates more efficient resource management, case management, law enforcement, and more. Here we’ll explore a few key advantages that develop from digitalizing your law enforcement agency.

1. Maximizing Evidence

One of the biggest difficulties in solving cases involves collecting evidence requisite to answer legal requirements. Digitalization consolidates information and may reveal additional details that couldn’t be perceived any other way. Consider the procedural shift that developed when video surveillance of the closed circuit variety became available.

Internet of Things (IoT) tech is at least as revolutionary. Beyond visual data, biometric data, environmental data, purely digital data, and more become available. If you’ve followed trending madness in celebrity circles, you probably saw Amber Heard struggling to communicate her idea of “meta data” regarding one attorney’s line of questioning.

That was in the recent Johnny Depp trial. Meta data is web-related information revealing dates and other information about varying communication. Just this year, that came up in a court of law. If your police agency is up-to-date on such tech via digitalization, you’ve got more evidence available to work with. Essentially, you can make the most of your evidence.

2. Reducing Operational Expenses

IoT can be used to monitor police vehicle functionality, identify operational conditions, facilitate swifter and more representative maintenance, and a lot more. Digitalization of archives reduces space requirements, further facilitating budget maximization. If you can adopt a digital solution and reduce personnel needs, that alone is a huge cost reducer.

Such advantages need not necessarily mean letting anyone go; police departments have to expand to some degree over time. Digitalization now is a future investment. Especially considering what a challenge police budgets tend to be, taking any advantage here is to be recommended.

3. Facilitating More Secure Law Enforcement Overall

When your budget goes further, that opens your department up to make more discretionary purchases when needed. Additionally, you can make better use of the equipment and personnel you have. Furthermore, you’re able to increase the amount of evidence acquisition and retention at a reduced cost. Altogether, these things optimize your total department.

You’re able to do more with less, essentially. Now you’re more free to keep your community safe; to truly protect and serve. Budget is one of the most challenging aspects of any police agency. Digitalization reduces this challenge.

As an example, consider server arrays. Digitalization utilizing the cloud can trade tens of thousands in hardware costs through a monthly subscription. Certainly, different departments will have different legal requirements which may or may not allow certain tech innovations, but as a general rule of thumb, if you can upgrade, you should.

Exploring the Possibilities of Police Digitalization

There’s a lot to recommend digitalization of your police agency where possible. You can save money, expand evidence collection, and overall facilitate greater operational efficiency. Today’s challenges to police are perhaps greater than they’ve been in over a generation. You need all the help you can get, and digitalization is an excellent way to get a leg up.