Forensic intelligence in Australia and New Zealand: Status and future directions

Forensic science is underutilised. Operating models restricted to the support of court outcomes do not address core requirements of contemporary policing and public security, which are to disrupt criminal activity and prevent crime. Forensic intelligence (FORINT) is a principal means of enhancing the role of forensic science, emphasising proactivity and cross-case, cross-crime domain insights. To catalyse implementation, a FORINT Specialist Advisory Group (SAG) has been established under the Australia & New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency (ANZPAA) National Institute of Forensic Science (NIFS). The SAG has established a concept of operations with four lines of effort – namely, to (i) promote awareness and consistency, (ii) shape the workforce, (iii) develop information management frameworks and (iv) guide operational implementation. This aims to shift Australia & New Zealand from its present state (of substantial interagency variability) to a state of widespread, consistent and effective FORINT delivery in terms of: (a) culture, (b) information management, (c) education & training, and (d) organisation & operating environment. There are risks to implementing FORINT, in terms of privacy/confidentiality, bias/misinterpretation, and resource impost. However, these are not necessarily FORINT-specific, and solutions or mitigations exist. Moreover, these issues are outweighed by the risks of not implementing FORINT – such as a failure to reveal threats, missed opportunities, and poor resource efficiency. This paper is a call to arms. For policing and laboratories – now is the time to implement and entrench FORINT. For academia – now is the time to build foundations for this future. For supporting industries – now is the time to develop partnerships and facilitate delivery.