Polish Police Develops a Video Game

[Foxi4]

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It's no secret that finding the so-called "Most Wanted" criminals can be quite a difficult task even for the best Police task forces. Sometimes no amount of photographs or sketches posted around towns, shown in newspapers, on the Internet or on TV help in finding those dangerous individuals - people's memory is a fickle thing and we hardly ever remember a face we've only seen on a photograph and we rarely pay attention to "Wanted" annoucements... which is why the Police sometimes uses more unconventional methods to spread the news.​

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"Most Wanted" is a smartphone video game released by the Polish police - it's based on the widely-popular "Memory Game" exercise. This freely-downloadable title contains approx. 150 photographs and sketches of the titular "Most Wanted" and has you match them in pairs, just like you'd normally match pictures in the original game.​

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While it's not something spectacular, it's definitely an interesting approach to the issue of distributing the likenesses of potentially dangerous individuals - after all, you're going to remember them better if you actually have to to "win".​

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The game can synchronize with the user's mailbox - the moment you see an individual you saw in the game, you can immediately inform the Police about it. The game has an integrated database of biographies of all the included criminals, so that the users can check who is wanted for what kind of crimes.

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This is the first instance of using a video game in pursuing real-life criminals.​

Source (Google Translated Version)

 

[FAST6191]

I was prepared to dismiss it but as they also gave a little biography I am going to find it amusing instead. I only hope somebody did not spend too much time peddling pop psychology to people so as to have it made.

 

[chartube12]

The biography part means this would never be legally usable in the us. Even criminals have a minimal expectation of privacy.

 

[Foxi4]

The biography part means this would never be legally usable in the us. Even criminals have a minimal expectation of privacy.

Not when they're wanted. All you'd have to do in the U.S.A is add "allegedly" before every charge. Moreover, those are often repeated offenders - even in the U.S.A a sexual offender may have a court order to go around the block and "meet the neighbours" telling them about his previous conviction.

 

[chartube12]

You still couldn't post a whole complete bio of a criminal. Things he is wanted for and to a very limited degree, some of his rap sheet yes. But a complete bio of his life, no way.

 

[Foxi4]

You still couldn't post a whole complete bio of a criminal. Things he is wanted for and to a very limited degree, some of his rap sheet yes. But a complete bio of his life, no way.

It's not a complete bio - it's one page of text with a rough description and the story of the crime he or she is wanted for. A screen on a smartphone can only fit so much text, y'know.

There are also exceptions from the "rule" you mention. Remember Christopher Dorner? The guy was hunted by the entire country and everyone could read his complete bio - stuff about his personal life, including personal letters were all over the news.

Besides, I don't see a problem in knowing what to expect from a wanted and highly dangerous criminal.

 

[TheCasketMan]

 

[Hells Malice]

You still couldn't post a whole complete bio of a criminal. Things he is wanted for and to a very limited degree, some of his rap sheet yes. But a complete bio of his life, no way.

If I facepalmed any harder at your failpost I'd probably have broken something.
Good god.

It doesn't describe their life story, why the hell would it do that. There are 0 legality issues with this.

 

[MasterM]

Actually, it was developed by advertising company, FOR police, not BY them.

 

[chartube12]

If I facepalmed any harder at your failpost i'd probably have broken something.
Good god.

It doesn't describe their life story, why the hell would it do that. There are 0 legality issues with this.

It says biography which implies life story.