Polk County Sheriff's Office and Florida Polytechnic University create new AI lab

POLK COUNTY, FL – The Polk County Sheriff's Office, in coordination with Florida Polytechnic University, has created a new artificial intelligence (AI) lab.

“Modern law enforcement must stay ahead of the technological curve when it comes to preventing, combating and solving crime. Besides the incredible potential benefits of artificial intelligence, there is a downside: criminals will use the technology to commit crimes. It is not just a “unit of inquiry”, it is a holistic unit dedicated to vision, discovery and creativity. Its goal is to use what we learn to keep the community safe. We are proud to partner with Florida Polytechnic to benefit from their proven expertise and human talent to fight crime,” said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd.

As part of this partnership, Florida Poly will contribute to the development and operational success of the PCSO AI Investigation Unit, providing technical and research support.

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Florida Poly student interns will gain unique, real-world experience working with law enforcement professionals in the field of AI and developing their skills. Interns will also provide advanced technology solutions to current PCSO systems.

Florida Poly President Dr. Randy Avent said the university is exploring program and degree opportunities related to AI fields of study and emphasized the importance of collaboration.

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“This working partnership with the Polk County Sheriff's Office is a natural fit with our mission to serve students and industry through excellence in education, discovery and application of engineering and applied sciences,” Avent said. “We strive to find real-world applications to bring value to the education of our students and value to our community. This is another way for us to be leaders in building a technology-based economy in Florida.

The newly created unit has several operational objectives:

· Identify emerging AI technologies and exploit and/or combat the misuse of these technologies.

· Provide ongoing updates on emerging AI technologies, methodologies and AI incident trends to law enforcement leaders.

· Develop and propose legislation and policy to protect the community from the new crimes that AI will certainly create, if left unchallenged.

· Design solutions with the next generation intellects of Florida Polytechnic University.

· Obtain and maintain cutting-edge training and tools to help identify AI-related crimes and criminals.

· Participate in criminal investigations involving the use of AI, including cyberstalking, identity theft, extortion, hate crimes and other related cybercrimes.

· Systematically vet new AI investigative software for use in a law enforcement context.

· Maintain up-to-date knowledge of evolving AI trends, techniques, tactics and procedures of threat actors using AI technology, including extortion and blackmail trends.

· Identify and analyze “deep fake” and AI-modified image/video/audio production technologies and methodologies used to mislead the public.

· Identify partnerships between federal, state, and local agencies to investigate AI incidents. Implement best policies and practices related to AI criminal investigations.

· Provide training and assistance in AI-related investigations (internal to the Polk County Sheriff's Office and external partner agencies).

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