This week, two of our analysts attended the 2013 i2 User Conference. We
were able to network with and attend sessions led by individuals working in the
law enforcement, intelligence, and financial communities in the United States
and Canada. Although many of us work in seemingly different fields, many of us
concluded that we were ultimately doing similar tasks and face similar issues.
At the end of the conference, there were three major takeaways that can relate
to any investigator or analyst, regardless of their industry or what tools they
use.
Data Silos are the Past and
Fusion Centers are the Future
The key issue discussed by almost every speaker and attendee was the difficulty
we all face gaining access to and sharing information across departments and
agencies. One problem almost every agency reported was having too many data
silos housing their information. Multiple storage locations fragment the information
in such a way that individuals can be consumed by looking through disparate
sources for data, even in their own agency. It also impedes the flow of
information between both coworkers and partner organizations. This problem was stressed
by multiple law enforcement agencies during their presentations, especially in
the case of the Boston Marathon Bombing.
Now, these agencies are working together to tear down the walls between organizations
to adapt a fusion center model. The Tucson Police Department,
Massachusetts State Police, and
the Miami-Dade Police Department have
all reported they are working on initiatives to bring together interagency data
sources to assist with investigations and prevent agencies from stepping on one
another’s toes. Similar collaborations are happening in the financial industry
in Canada through the Canadian Banker’s Association. It is
becoming imperative that agencies share information to be effective in their
day-to-day intelligence and investigative endeavors.
Nothing Exists in a Bubble
Multiple speakers discussed the need for us all as investigators,
analysts, researchers, and intelligence operatives to understand the world
around us. It is extremely important to understand the world around you from
culture to events to societal changes. Dr. Steve Chan really
drove the point home that nothing we examine exists in a vacuum, and in order
to fully understand the issue at hand, we have to educate ourselves about the
larger picture as a whole, including historical and present context. To be truly
effective, we must keep up with items such as current events, changes in
society, trends, new technology, and pop culture. In addition, we also need to
ensure we are constantly engaging coworkers and individuals from other agencies
to share information.
Social Media is Paramount
It was evident from the start of the i2 Conference that social media was
going to take the main stage. Most of the sessions at this conference touched
on the importance of social media, and the sessions specifically regarding
social media were standing room only. Social media is now becoming widely
regarded for its ability to give analysts and investigators new leads in cases
when all internal data and public records information have been exhausted. It
also is a fantastic resource for network building because we can identify
underlying connections that may have been missed through other investigative
means. However, there are still some issues with data normalization and legal
admission of social media evidence. People are now looking for new ways to
better extract, analyze, authenticate, and fuse data from the social media
goldmine. As researchers, it is imperative that we stay abreast of all of the
changes in the social media landscape.
Conclusion
For us, the i2 User Conference was a success. We were able to learn from
individuals in related industries about the challenges they face and how they
are working to conquer them. One of the only ways we can learn is to work
together to create new, innovative solutions to the issues that plague our
organizations.
