Biometrics and RFID tracking on anti-crime wish-list

The government has revealed a wish-list of technologies it wants to use to fight crime and tackle terrorism, including greater use of biometrics and RFID tracking.

The Home Office has published its Science and Innovation Strategy which gives details of the technologies it believes can help the government implement its policies.

For example, the Home Office Scientific Development Branch (HOSDB) is pioneering a new way to test motorists to see if they are under the influence of legal or illegal drugs, using spectroscopy to analyse saliva under a beam of laser light.

HOSDB is also currently developing millimetre wave technology for detecting threats under clothing, which could be able to identify materials as well as locate objects.

Home Office minister Andy Burnham said in a statement: "We are dealing with increasingly sophisticated, organised criminality and we need to ensure that our use of science and technology meets the challenge."

The report also said the future will see increased use of biometric identification, and plans to create a "Biometric Centre of Expertise" to help find other uses for the technology.

It added: "We are also looking at how miniaturisation technologies like 'lab on a chip' can help deliver improved forensic analysis both at crime scenes and in the lab."

Another priority is tracking technologies and RFID. The report said that tracking technologies are already being used for the surveillance of criminals and terrorist suspects, and the management of offenders by the use of tagging and satellite tracking.

The Home Office said it has encouraged the use of RFID tags to track goods to reduce counterfeiting and enable the recovery of stolen goods, and added: "We believe that tracking technologies have further applications and we are keen to keep abreast of developments and influence the commercial market to meet emerging national and international requirements."

It added: "Similarly, there will be significant benefits when the systems for automatic tracking and identification from CCTV pictures are reliable enough to meet our real-world applications."