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The Guardian reports that algorithms are being used to study data on thousands of people in order to determine whether they’re likely to kill at some point in the future.
The UK is seemingly getting more surveillance-friendly, if that’s even possible.
A new report from The Guardian indicates that the UK government is developing a ‘murder prediction’ programme that utilises the personal data of special interest individuals to determine who is most likely to become murderers. Yes, really.
Allegedly, researchers are using algorithms to analyse information from thousands of people – including victims of crime – while trying to identify those at greatest risk of committing serious violent offences.
Originally titled the ‘homicide prediction project,’ it aims to boost public safety; that’s the official line, at least. Campaigners have called the entire ordeal ‘chilling and dystopian.’
The project was first found by the pressure group Statewatch. Some of the further details were discovered through documents obtained by Freedom of Information requests, The Guardian reports.
Personal information regarding self-harm and domestic abuse has been used as part of the project, even from people who weren’t convicted criminals, Statewatch says.
However, officials strongly deny this, claiming that only data regarding those who have at least one criminal conviction has been used thus far.
So far, the government says the project is only at the research stage. Critics worry about biases against minority-ethnic people and those living in poverty, much like we’ve seen from skewed AI image generators and models.
Information is being sourced from places such as the Probation Service and data from Greater Manchester police before 2015.
Names, dates of birth, gender and ethnicity, and a number that identifies people on the police national computer are included as part of the information collection process.
