GOTHENBURG, Sweden - The Sweden-based world leader in digital media forensics for CSA investigations, Griffeye Technologies and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (“NCMEC”), the largest and most influential child protection organization in the U.S., today announced their partnership. The two parties will work together on new tools and information-sharing capabilities to support all U.S. law enforcement CSA investigators. The new system will revolutionize how U.S. law enforcement professionals work on CSA investigations, enabling investigators to successfully increase their capabilities to identify critical evidence to identify and safeguard more victims.
CSA investigators today face an ever-increasing amount of data and material in their daily work. Despite recent technological advancements, the sheer volume of data puts an immense burden on law-enforcement professionals. The need for accuracy and efficiency in handling CSA material is crucial to empower investigators to efficiently handle the whole investigation chain, from leads to safeguarding victims. This would reduce redundancy and enhance the ability to focus and prioritize efforts on the cases that need it.
NCMEC operates the CyberTipline, the designated place in the U.S. for reports on suspected online child sexual exploitation and the Child Victim Identification Program (CVIP), the nation’s clearinghouse on identified child victims of child sexual abuse material. The CyberTipline received 32 million reports last year alone, with most offenses traced overseas. Efficient sharing of information between NCMEC and investigators is key to quickly identifying the most important data.
Griffeye and NCMEC have entered a partnership where Griffeye will develop a collaborative platform for NCMEC to share valuable information with U.S. CSA investigators. This will give investigators the ability to compare file data against NCMEC’s systems in real-time through Griffeye Analyze. The integration of NCMEC’s existing file comparison tools into Griffeye Analyze will streamline investigator workflows and provide increased opportunities to prioritize first-gen material and safeguard victims from ongoing abuse.
“The tools we will develop for investigators and where they can share information and validate the data in their cases immediately, will be a giant leap forward to empower investigators in identifying victims more quickly and processing and solving more cases, while reducing their exposure to disturbing material. At Griffeye, we have already pioneered a similar system in the UK, and we are honored that NCMEC has chosen us to create this game-changing information-sharing capability. We know this is something that CSA investigators have requested for a long time, and we look forward to the impact that this partnership will bring to their important daily work,” says Johann Hoffman, CEO of Griffeye Technologies.
“We’re excited about this new partnership because it has potential to make a significant impact,” said Michelle DeLaune, President and CEO at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. “We know that online child exploitation has no borders, and this collaboration will allow investigators to get the tools they need quicker, enhancing their ability to find crucial evidence and fight child exploitation around the world.”
The partnership focuses on two areas; bolstering NCMEC’s existing process of CyberTipline file review and integrating the Griffeye Analyze platform to share and receive information with NCMEC’s Child Victim Identification Program (CVIP), allowing live hash matching and receipt of information on CSA files to support victim identification efforts.
About Griffeye
Griffeye revolutionized law enforcement investigation processes with the release of its digital investigation platform in 2015. Today, Griffeye Technologies is world-leading in its field and used by over 1,000 police agencies across the world for processing, sorting and analyzing large volumes of images and videos – especially in cases containing child sexual abuse (CSA) material. Visit us at www.griffeye.com
About NCMEC
NCMEC is a private, non-profit organization founded in 1984 to serve as the national clearinghouse and resource center in the U.S. for information about missing and sexually exploited children. Over nearly 40 years, the Alexandria, VA-based organization has helped law enforcement recover more than 400,000 missing children. Since it began operating in 1998, NCMEC’s CyberTipline has received more than 161 million reports of suspected child sexual exploitation, which are sent to the appropriate law-enforcement agency in the U.S. and around the world. Visit us at www.missingkids.org