Where there is a will, there is a way and there’s an iPhone app for that as well. In the past, we’ve showcased several interesting apps on this blog and the latest one to join the list is MORIS (Mobile Offender Recognition and Identification System) – an iPhone app that allows cops to use an iPhone to [...]
Where there is a will, there is a way and there’s an iPhone app for that as well. In the past, we’ve showcased several interesting apps on this blog and the latest one to join the list is MORIS (Mobile Offender Recognition and Identification System) – an iPhone app that allows cops to use an iPhone to take photos of suspects, which are then compared to a database of other criminal mugshots that the state is currently compiling. The app is currently being used by police officers in Brockton, Massachusetts. Criminal investigations surely don’t get any more futuristic than this!
So, how does it work? The app is installed on special iPhones (costing nearly worth $3,000 a piece) that are carried by police offers in Brockton and are well connected to a statewide database of offenders. The app lets police officers take pictures of suspects and the app instantaneously lets them know if the suspect has a criminal record or not. The MORIS app uses facial recognition technology to identify suspects within a matter of seconds. The data of the picture shot by the police officer is matched against a database at Brockton’s booking desk and the Plymouth County Sheriff’s Department, which stores records of offenders’ eyes.
The app is developed by BI2 Technologies, with New Hampshire-based Animetrics contributing its facial recognition technology. The app will be enhanced to offer iris- and fingerprint-recognition abilities, as well. It is expected to be used statewide by cops in Massachusetts later this year. The use of iPhone applications for criminal investigations and law enforcement is steadily on the rise. Police officers in Australia use it to check cars and verify license registration information for vehicles on the move. The Campus police at the University of Illinois came up with another innovative use of the iPhone – to monitor campus security using cam footage taken via iPhones and iPads.
Here’s a video that shows the MORIS app in action at the Brockton police department.
Lily Allen
Nadine Velazquez
Nikki Reed
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