The European Terrorist Register is creating a Europe-wide database on terrorists and terrorist suspects, which should help investigators to search. And security forces around the world are experimenting with scoring systems that categorize terrorist suspects and calculate the likelihood that they will actually strike in the future.
These are just two of many new instruments that countries worldwide want to use to combat terrorism. However, the tools against terrorism are controversial - and the consequences of errors can be drastic.
In Germany, the security authorities rely on the Radar-iTE risk assessment software to assess the acute threat emanating from Islamist terrorist suspects - whether the tool can also be applied to the right-wing extremist sector is currently being examined.
David Ebener / DPA
Risk calculation: Software should warn of potential terrorists
"Radar-iTE is an element of an improved and nationwide standardized risk assessment and measure prioritization," it says on request bulky by the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA). Currently, "about 670 people are working on the risk assessment tool" - although not all of these persons are "formally classified as a threat and / or relevant person". However, the BKA could not provide information on results and conclusions "for reasons of political or police policy".
An abstract risk - with consequences
At her lecture "One year new police laws - and now what?" Netzpolitik.org author Marie Bröckling warned at the network policy conference on Friday that the "dangerous" debate in Germany had created a new category of people to whom an "abstract risk" would be attributed - they would be convicted, before committing a crime.
The consequences of such attributions can be seen in the US: A federal judge in the US has recently ruled that the Terrorist Screening Database (TSDB), also known as the Terror Watchlist, violates US citizens' constitutional rights central tool of FBI and Department of Homeland Security with more than a million entries. The verdict states that "the risk of an erroneous deprivation of freedom of travel and reputations" is high. For years, people who were classified as "known and suspected terrorists" were given entry bans, they were specially monitored and were sometimes subjected to hours of questioning.
When data on terrorist suspects are transmitted across authorities and across national borders, their context of origin is increasingly obscured. The FBI's Terrorist Screening Center (TSC) is also using the Federal Criminal Police Office to exchange data on "persons with a terrorism relationship" as part of a pilot project.
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Strange digital world: privacy on Tinder
Dating apps like Tinder or OkCupid give a sentiment about how serious many users are with privacy and privacy. Answer: not so serious. I am always horrified by how many users of such apps give their true name, occupation and other indications that make them easy to lure themselves. Best still with an extensive picture gallery and linked Instagram profile - but the risk of being stalked by unpleasant wannabe louvers on other channels is quite high, especially for women.
App of the Week: "Bastack Ball "
tested by Tobias Kirchner
Woordy Entertainment
"Bastack Ball" is a typical game for the smartphone: A simple idea meets an ever-increasing challenge. A basketball has to be jumped at the right moment, while platforms are coming into the picture from the right. The ball should of course land on this, and so creates a slowly growing tower. That's about all. Things that are easy in the beginning become more difficult as the game progresses. The hunt for the perfect combination ensures motivation and fast fun.
Free, from Woordy Entertainment, with no in-app purchases: iOS, Android
Foreign Link: Three tips from other media
- "The Atlas of Surveillance" (English, 20 minutes of reading): Drones, bodycams and car scanners are being upgraded in cities along the US border with Mexico. The civil rights organization Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and journalism students at the University of Nevada have created an atlas that makes the full monitoring visible - the data can also be downloaded.
- "This bothers women looking for a room on Facebook" (four minutes of reading): The housing market is so tense that female students advertise themselves as roommates in Facebook groups, as in a recruitment competition, reports "Vice". But instead of housing offers received many requests for dates, insults and sexual harassment.
- "Robot priests can bless you, advise you, and even perform your funeral" (English, six minutes of reading)
From Robo priests to halo bots to digital helpers in the Buddhist temple, "Vox" provides an exciting overview of where and in what form robots and artificial intelligence have already found their way into churches, temples, and faith - and how artificial intelligence itself becomes the subject of quasi-religious worship.
I wish you a nice week!
Sonja Peteranderl
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