SOUTH WINDSOR, CT (WFSB) – Police say they are using technology to combat crime.
South Windsor is part of an 8-Town Center of Digital Investigations, formed to investigate computer crimes against children.
Now, police say it is being used to help with several other cases.
Detective Kevin Geraci of the South Windsor Police says, “we’re doing cell phone forensics and computer forensics related to burglaries and stolen cars and things like that.”
Geraci says he must go through two weeks of specialized training and ongoing education, just to keep up with cybercrimes.
He says there are other elements to the job as well, like keeping up with tools of the trade and writing blockers to examine devices for evidence. “If we’re looking at it, it’ll prevent us from accidentally putting something on the drive or corrupting it in any way,” says Geraci.
One tool he uses is a Faraday Bag. “The material in there will keep it shielded to prevent any access to the device while it’s in the bag until we can get it back to our lab,” Geraci says.
South Windsor residents say they are glad to hear that their police department is working to keep up with technology.
“There’s so many scams online and a lot of people are being taken, so if there’s something the police department can help out with, I think that would be great,” says South Windsor resident Catherine Giarrizzo.
Geraci says training is expensive, and the job requires top-of-the-line equipment. Therefore, not every town has an officer that specializes in cyber investigations. Geraci says he thinks that will change because his work is needed on almost every case.
“I foresee most agencies having someone somehow involved in some computer forensics or cell phone forensics,” says Geraci.
Geraci says police departments make mental health a priority especially when they investigate crimes against children. At departments that heavily deal with child crime, officers are usually rotated off that beat after a certain amount of time. He also adds that some departments have software alerts that tell officers to take breaks.
Gloss