Crime & Technology

I haven’t seen a ton of articles that focus on the intersection of Crime & Technology around worldbuilding. Consider our current environment. With the evolution of the internet, we’ve seen entirely new career paths develop in an effort to stave off cybercriminals. Today, many IT Professionals have careers dedicated to detecting and preventing penetration attempts into our computer-driven workplaces. This group is responsible for maintaining detection tools, best practices, and communication to educate the employee base. Likewise, we have a lawyer on staff who is dedicated to information privacy and security. As the company brings in vendors, the risks increase with each new piece of hardware or software installed.  

Now, consider a poor little author writing a novel back in the 1920s. How would he or she have imagined this particular impact of technology on society? I propose that the answer lies in getting into the mindset of a criminal or maybe a technologist.  I’d also propose that progress in this area will necessitate a shift in our fiction in the following ways:

• The occupations of our main characters
• How our characters interact with one another
• The societal factors that affect the story from afar

Emerging technologies

Consider a few new(er) technologies currently emerging… 

Virtual Reality 

The Oculus Rift (and other virtual reality technology) – is there a way that a criminal might be able to sabotage this device? It’s a pretty personal mentally stimulating device. What if someone figured out a way to use it to brainwash people. That might make for an interesting story… 

Bio-Technology and Neural Networks 

Some implantable devices are beginning to come equipped with some simple neural networks. The beginnings of AI, right? So, if I were a criminal, how might I go about using that technology to my devious advantage? This one is a bit tougher, and I don’t have a ready answer. However, think about devices implanted within people learning enough to cause something adverse? It’s a thought. 

Artificial Intelligence 

Many of the stories around artificial intelligence tend to be about an AI going rogue. But, what if we, as a society, came to rely on robots so much that it changed our entire culture? What might go on within a criminal mind to cause problems within society when this has become the norm? 

Law Enforcement Technology 

Let’s flip it a minute and consider how technology designed to help law enforcement agencies might cause shifts in society. A paper from 2017 entitled Research on the Impact of Technology on Policing Strategy in the 21st Century, Final Report by Kevin Strom mentions technologies under evaluation. These include areas such as social media, car cameras, data mining tools, crime mapping, body-worn cameras, and license plate readers. I’d argue that we’re in a state of change and agree with Strom when he recommends that more research is necessary for the implementation of this technology as a means of law enforcement.

Oh, but think of the possibilities around crime & technology you could implement in a story that would enhance your world. Let’s say we’re only 20 years in the future and much of the policing is done through social media. How would that impact your main characters’ lives or the society in general? Some of this has been done (a la Minority Report), but there are always new takes on it that would make for an interesting read. 

Continue the Crime & Technology conversation!

I’m certain many of my readers out there will have some additions to this list. Let’s hear them in the commentary below! Or give it a share on your favorite social platform. Be sure to tag me so I can join in the conversation. @susanstradiottoauthor on FB, @stradiottos on Twitter, or @susanstradiotto on Insta.