Digital Data Examination Network

The group employs machine learning, facial identification, and AI in the detection, recovery and analysis of digital data from audio-video and CCTV footage, 2D and 3D images and online material for the identification of deepfakes, cybercrime, counter-terrorism and security risks.

Research Lead: Professor Dhiya Al-Jumeily OBE and Dr Sandra Ortego

Case study

Computer Science aids murder prosecution

CCTV is a powerful weapon in the battle against criminals but law enforcement is often too under-resourced to fully exploit it. The group worked with the Metropolitan Police on a murder case which resulted in the defendant being sentenced to 35 years in prison. Professor Paul Fergus and Dr Carl Chalmers applied artificial intelligence object detection to identify people and cars and help police piece together the movements of persons of interest. The system enabled more than 60 million images to be scanned in a tiny fraction of the time it would have taken detectives. Said Paul: “In crime and security, AI detection systems are increasingly used to detect and track objects of interest, such as people, vehicles, and suspicious packages, providing valuable data to policing and security services.”