Algeria to get UK support on digital forensics, biometrics for policing

The Directorate General of National Security of Algeria (DGSN) has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United Kingdom’s Home Office aimed at strengthen the North African country’s policing capabilities with advanced technologies.

Per the MoU, Algerian police personnel and technicians will benefit from the UK’s expertise on digital forensics and biometrics for criminal investigations, as reported by the Algerian Police YouTube channel.

The Director General of National Security, Ali Badaoui, who was on a recent working visit to the UK, signed on behalf of his country, while the UK Minister of State for Borders and Asylum, Alex Norris, put pen to paper as representative of his country’s government.

Specifically, the UK Police, which hopes to further incorporate advanced digital technologies into operational practice, will offer digital fingerprint analysis training and knowledge exchange for Algerian police officers.

It is the hope of the parties that the deal will go a long way in reinforcing the operational partnership and develop the capacities of Algerian police officers and technicians in the field of advanced digital fingerprint analysis.

Also, the collaboration will be useful in the sharing of knowledge in identity recognition and verification which is vital in criminal investigations and the fight against organized crime.

According to the Algerian government, the partnership with the UK aims to strengthen its law enforcement and digital identity capabilities within a broader perspective of transforming how policing happens in the country. Algeria believes the collaboration will boost its efforts to better tackling organized crime and cross-border digital threats.

It is also reported that during the Badaoui’s trip, the DGSN Director General also visited the National Crime Agency (NCA) where he got a briefing on the UK’s experience in the use of modern digital technologies to track and combat crime national and transnational crime.

As part of efforts to strengthen its digital transformation, the Algerian government recently approved a legislation to govern sectorial digital IDs and trust services.

Article Topics

Algeria  |  biometric identification  |  biometrics  |  criminal ID  |  forensics  |  law enforcement  |  UK