Free Essay: Policing and Civil Liberties

The government is at the epicenter of the determination of civil liberties through the enactment of laws and policies that govern the people (Awan, 2011). Government agencies have been capacitated to conduct surveillance and, investigate individuals and various organizations for the public good. However, their capacity to perform the above functions is restricted by the various regulatory and statutory laws and the various constitutional amendments. The progressive nature of innovations in technology has significantly contributed to the increase in cyber-related crimes, and security agencies should develop more sophisticated technological measures to safeguard civil liberties.

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Some of the technical issues affecting policing and civil liberties include the following. First is the use of personal data by lawbreakers to commit cybercrime (Costigan, & Stone, 2017). This information can be stolen from social media, hacking into other people's personal profiles misplaced data and insecure websites. Secondly, terrorists also use advanced technology to break borders without being noticed by the relevant security agencies (Costigan, & Stone, 2017). The lawbreakers also use technology to hide their identities, this way, they can remain anonymous and continue advancing on criminal acts.

The above issues affect civil liberties in multiple ways. Cybercrime infringes into people's rights for privacy. Equally, hacking facilitates loss of money from individual bank accounts haunted by criminals against the account holder's consent therefore violating civil liberty (Costigan, & Stone, 2017). Terrorists who break over boarders and commit crimes such as mass killings deny the people their right live. Surveillance and collection of data of millions of citizens may give room to misuse of the information by the agencies. In case the data is stolen from such agencies, it be used to commit crime and the government would have failed on its constitutional mandate to protect its people.

Due to the increasing technology related and sophisticated crimes, the laws enforcement urgencies ought to advance their strategies in combating the crime through adopting to the use of tech tools (Geary, 2014). It is increasingly important to develop cutting edge and more sophisticated software and tracking systems to be used in criminal justice to keep the public safe. Individuals that are studying and practicing criminal justice should be at the forefront of live-saving technology to safeguard civil liberties (Awan, 2011).

One of the steps is adoption of big data storage systems technologies, they are vital in policing and fighting crimes of the 21st century (Geary, 2014). Ability to collect big data such as finger prints and DNA and store it in databases helps legal experts in quick identification of suspects and recognition of trends regarding criminal offences. For instance, the transition by the United States law enforcement agencies to adopt NIBRS (National Incident-Based Reporting System) is a move to enhance data collection and storage technology (Geary, 2014). the system allows clearer view of crime and transparency by comprehensive reporting of data. Other available systems available for the United States agencies include the NCIC (National Crime Information Center) and N-DEx (National Data Exchange) among others (Geary, 2014).

Another step is the adoption of rapid identification systems which enable the law enforcement agencies to quickly retrieve suspect information via basic search. This way, the detectives can find out facts about individuals by studying their criminal history within a short time. For instance, through the help of in-car computer search, the police can identify unlicensed drivers as soon as they are pulled over.

The agencies can also use of detection, monitoring and positioning systems to make the law enforcers proactive rather than reactive. These systems include the GPS (Global positioning systems), gunshot technology, drones, surveillance cameras, and automatic license plate scanning. The use of electronic and non-electronic surveillance practices, such as countering violent extremism, predictive policing, stingrays, community mapping and biometric technology can also contribute significantly to improvement of policing and safeguard civil liberties.

Privacy is a hot discussion issue in the 21st century and there is no distinct conclusion to state whether there is sufficient security to privacy (Costigan, & Stone, 2017). However, the government and the law enforcement agencies have only guaranteed moderate privacy to the people in terms of protection of personal data. The general data protection regulation gives individual end-users rights of their date by placing data privacy and security obligations on businesses and companies which are holding the end user's data (Geary, 2014). It is the responsibility of individuals to request the data privacy officers of various institutions and agencies to provide or delete their personal information or data from their servers.

Information technology companies and business entities which are involved are obliged to ensure that the data for their clients in encrypted and cannot be accessed by hackers whatsoever (Awan, 2011). Data encryption is not for information technology experts, but it is a modern data protection tool that helps individuals to encrypt their personal data. There is always a persistent focus on how the users' personally identifiable information is protected and kept private. The staff of these business companies are not allowed to view or decrypt the users' personal information. These business companies should not only focus on how the user's data is stored and processed, but they also need to understand where, how, and why the data should be kept private.

Technology has taken over the running of various systems over the world and various government and private entities are tracking fast to keep up with the speed. Lawbreakers are taking advantage of the increasing technological advances to commit crimes, therefore, the government and law enforcement agencies should adopt modern ways of administering justice. Keeping user personal information private is the government and business entities' priority because it is a way of safeguarding individuals' data. Importantly, the government and business entities should update and test their security system and technologies regularly to ensure the end-users data privacy is maintained.

References

Awan, I. (2011). The erosion of civil liberties: Pre-charge detention and counter-terror laws. Police Journal, 84, 3, 272-284.

Costigan, R., & Stone, R. (2017). Civil liberties & human rights. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Geary, M. (2014). National security and civil liberty: A chronological perspective. Durham, North Carolina: Carolina Academic Press.