In addition to problems that are mainly exacerbated by geopolitical risks, criminal police authorities at the federal, state, and EU levels face several acute challenges. In particular, massive fraud incidents "with an international connection," which were almost described as Denial-of-Service attacks on the second day of the BKA Autumn Conference in Berlin, occupy the criminal police.
The problem is, for example, the sheer number of incidents in which money is unlawfully debited from accounts or via credit card. Most procedures lead nowhere, are terminated, and the victims often remain stuck with their losses. "We have international fraud networks that generate funds on an international scale, with billion-dollar profits," describes a criminal officer the situation. The perpetrators use, for example, well-crafted shock communication, sometimes employing AI and based on targeted analyses of personal data."
Share more data
But what could help against this? A police authority's approach: sharing more data with each other in more standardized formats, searchable and analyzable – and preferably across federal state borders. Because fraud cases with "Tatort Internet," WhatsApp or phone are usually handled by local police. And in many cases – to the frustration of investigators – are ended without results after a while. And that is already part of what not only the Federal Criminal Police Office, but almost all of the security agencies represented in abundance at the conference were dealing with: How is the existing security structure compatible with current circumstances?
In particular, when exchanging intelligence information from third-party sources, that is, from partner agencies, there are problems, as described by BfV Deputy Director Jens Koch. Above all, a very practical one: The police are generally not equipped for the security level "Classified – Top Secret." Also, system incompatibilities, missing or differing standards, and non-existent or incompatible sensor technology are among the identified issues.
BKA President Holger Münch explained at the conclusion of the event on Thursday afternoon that even a high threshold for data exchange was "completely out of date." The agencies therefore had to now hurry on entirely different fields – and also deviate from the usual paths of lengthy procedural decisions and years of preliminary planning – in order to make any changes.
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