The purpose of the INDECT project is to involve European scientists and researchers in the development of solutions to and tools for automatic threat detection.

The primary objective is to develop advanced and innovative algorithms for human decision support in combating terrorism and other criminal activities, such as human trafficking, child pornography, detection of dangerous situations (e.g. robberies) and the use of dangerous objects (e.g. knives or guns) in public spaces. Efficient tools for dealing with such situations are crucial to ensuring the safety of citizens.

A significant part of the project is dedicated to the development of tools and methods for data and privacy protection. The processed information is protected before its transmission or storage to prevent any attempts at unauthorized access. Dedicated tools are being developed to protect citizens’ privacy in areas covered by visual monitoring systems.

The main tasks of INDECT can be divided into 3 categories as shown below.

Contemporary CCTV monitoring systems are mainly based on the continuous observation approach, where the monitored area is under constant supervision by the operator. If the operator is dishonest, this can potentially lead to privacy abuse.

The INDECT project adopts a new approach based on threat monitoring (also known as “black/dark screen monitoring”). In contrast to the traditional approach, it focuses on potentially threatening situations, and gives the operator access to the video only when his attention is actually needed. The system automatically detects dangerous events and alerts the operator, who makes the final decision about the action that needs to be taken. The process is carried out in accordance with all relevant regulations.

The research conducted within the project aims to improve the efficiency and accuracy of existing video monitoring systems.

INDECT is not installing any cameras in the EU; nor is it filming people at random. It is not connected to any existing database or social network.

One of the main tools developed within this category is INACT, a system for rapid detection of child pornography on storage devices (mainly hard drives) captured by police forces on the basis of a warrant. INACT is especially useful if the illegal content is hidden in large data volumes.

There are two main research directions related to this category – development of digital watermarking, and cryptographic algorithms. The digital watermarks are used to secure multimedia content against malicious tampering, and to provide a novel privacy protection mechanism. The approach adopted enables sensitive information, such as faces or license number plates, to be collected and displayed to authorized system users only.

The development of new cryptographic algorithms delivers enhanced security for both data transmission and storage. A modern symmetric cipher has been designed, verified, and implemented both in software and hardware. This research also addresses the potential of adopting quantum cryptography to further improve the security of the solutions developed.