Tech companies must make OSINT tools more user friendly to help the police tackle rising knife crime, says Dave Sampson, Consultant at investigative software developers Altia.
Knife crime in the UK remains a huge issue that’s causing devastation across our society. In 2024, there were 262 knife-crime-related murders, with 57 victims under the age of 25, according to recent data from the Ben Kinsella Trust. It’s an immediate problem that needs addressing. The Government understands this and has pledged to halve knife crime over the next decade. To achieve this, decisive action is required and much of the Government’s initiative emphasises leveraging technology to track, prevent, and prosecute these crimes.
For example, the Government has committed £1m to support a new policing unit to monitor the sale of knives online. This is an essential step forward, particularly considering the increasingly sophisticated methods criminals use to avoid detection. As part of the response to these challenges, Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) tools have emerged as a critical technology. OSINT, which collects publicly available data from social media platforms, the dark web, news outlets, and more, is revolutionising law enforcement’s ability to track and understand criminal behaviour.
For knife crime, these technologies can help police forces trace the online sale of weapons, identify threats early, and disrupt criminal activity before they can act. OSINT tools, although powerful, are not without challenges. Many of them are complex, requiring expertise that may not always be readily available.
As technology providers, we must look to simplify these tools to ensure they are effective, usable, and can be deployed quickly and efficiently—particularly when time, resources, and expertise are in short supply.
Using OSINT to decrease knife crime
OSINT tools are essential in tracking online sales of knives, with Commander Stephen Clayman highlighting how criminals use innovative tactics to sidestep legal frameworks, operating on encrypted platforms or shifting between different websites to avoid detection. With the right OSINT software, police forces can scan vast amounts of data, identify potential threats, and track illicit transactions. By setting alerts on specific keywords, URLs, or images related to knife sales or other forms of criminal activity, law enforcement agencies can stay one step ahead.
Additionally, tools such as Altia’s Community Point, which serves as an extension of its OSINT Investigator empowers users to report online content anonymously, meaning they can inform investigators about knives and related crime with confidence that they won’t be identified, and further helps the software to carry out proactive monitoring. Given that criminals are constantly evolving the way they operate, the ability to monitor new marketplaces, social media conversations, and encrypted communications in real time is crucial.
Another key part of the digital picture of knife crime, is any information that can be gathered from the public. By extending OSINT tools with a means of offering a reliable, secure and confidential way for anyone to upload information from any device, forces can remove the need for manual retrieval, saving valuable time and resources – quickly building a more complete picture of an incident or situation and making it easier to triage information.
User-friendly tools
Despite the power of OSINT, the tools must be available to investigators without too much complexity, or their capabilities become redundant. As the landscape of online crime continues to evolve, investigators need technology that helps them quickly gather and interpret data, without requiring specialised expertise. The vast amount of data available can overwhelm investigators, leading to delays, inefficiencies, and missed opportunities to act. For OSINT to truly support police forces, the technology needs to be intuitive and easy to use. For example, features that offer self-service functionalities and audit trails that are simple to navigate, will make OSINT more accessible, without reliance on specialist teams. These features would help law enforcement agencies make the best use of OSINT, ensuring they can act swiftly. This, in turn, will ensure OSINT plays a crucial role in addressing the problem of knife crime and making the UK a safer place to live.
Saving time and resources
It’s no secret policing is often under-resourced, with budget cuts leaving forces struggling to maintain staffing levels and operational capacity. By automating much of the data collection and analysis, OSINT tools can save vital time and resources, which can then be redirected to frontline operations. Additionally, OSINT helps police forces avoid the costly and resource-intensive methods traditionally used in investigations. Surveillance, informants, and covert operations can all be expensive and take significant time. In contrast, OSINT tools allow investigators to access valuable data proactively and almost instantly, enabling them to act quickly and efficiently. It’s important to recognise that knife crime is a complex societal issue that requires a multi-faceted approach. There’s no single solution, but technology—particularly OSINT—can help streamline the investigative process, improve efficiency, and uncover critical information quickly. It’s a tool that complements, rather than replaces, traditional policing methods.
To truly make a difference in the fight against knife crime, the entire technology sector must work closely with law enforcement to provide tools that are both powerful and user-friendly. By doing so, we can help police forces, and the government monitor threats, track criminal networks, and ultimately prevent harm in our communities. By working together, we can provide police forces with the tools they need to make their investigations more efficient, and ultimately, make our communities safer. This is not just about technology; it’s about saving lives and protecting the most vulnerable among us.
