The role of information technology in a safe society

Tjark Tjin-A-Tsoi is chief executive officer of the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI). The NFI is one of the leading forensic service providers in the world.The NFI conducts technical scientific analysis to help solve crimes. Products and services of the NFI range from physical and chemical technology, DNA-analysis and narcotics to forensic pathology, toxicology, research on micro traces and digital technology and biometrics. Important clients are the Public Prosecution Service and the police. In addition the NFI provides services to international authorities, foreign police or justice authorities and in some cases for the private sector. 

Security & Safety
Tjin-A-Tsoi is also Track Leader for the WCIT 2010 Track Security and Safety. “The track appeals to us because the exciting combination of the topics safety and technology is what our field is all about. The NFI is uniquely positioned between these two topics. Furthermore, it is our aim to develop long-term relationships with leading technology companies to develop the forensic tools and services of tomorrow for our clients. WCIT promises to be an important event for both IT companies and their customers.”

High level forum
“Digital technology and the internet have tremendous potential. Nevertheless, in order to unlock this potential, people are becoming acutely aware of the fact that the digital revolution and the great dependence on digital technology has also created serious risks such as identity theft, bank fraud and data loss. What I hope this WCIT will do for the Challenges of Change is to provide a high level forum to discuss the most important safety topics, from ex ante prevention to ex post forensics.”

IT breakthrough for safety
Tjin-A-Tsoi is convinced that a true breakthrough in the near future will be that security measures are transparently implemented within software. “Users need not to be aware of these security measures anymore. IT offers great possibilities for the welfare and health and safety of people. In order to use all the benefits of this great technology, special care should be taken of a number of challenges such as mobile security and secure identification. New technological innovations and their implementation need the involvement of politicians, the public and private sector and other stakeholders. The WCIT 2010 conference can deliver a significant  distribution in facilitating this process."