Jangan ketinggalan dengan penjenayah dalam AI, polis diberitahu

Kriminologi, P Sundramoorthy, has urged the Malaysian police to elevate the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in tandem with the advancement of technology in criminal activities. Sundramoorthy, from Universiti Sains Malaysia, emphasized that criminal syndicates no longer adhere to physical boundaries or rely on traditional communication channels and conventional scams.

These groups now employ digital platforms, collaborative communication, and technologies such as deepfakes, which are bolstered by increasingly sophisticated AI.

For police forces, this represents a serious challenge and a significant opportunity. Sundramoorthy explained that criminals can exploit technology faster than traditional police systems can adapt. He urged the police to shift towards AI-driven risk-based policing by proposing the establishment of a national AI command center within the force.

This center would function as an operations hub, initiating risk-based crime analysis, mapping criminal activities, monitoring cybercrime, and analyzing planned criminal networks to provide real-time support during operations.

Sundramoorthy pointed out that the AI-powered platform can collect and link information from various agencies to identify crime patterns, geographical focuses, and potential connections between seemingly unrelated cases. He explained that the main challenge is transforming the large amount of data into actionable intelligence followed by taking further action.

AI can assist in this process. The aim is to move Malaysia's police force from a predominantly reactive model to a preventive one based on evidence and risk-driven policing.

Last week, Commercial Crime Investigation Department Director-General Rusdi Isa stated that Malaysians suffered around RM2.97 billion in online scams in 2025 so far. In the first five months of this year alone, losses had reached RM830 million. Last month, the Inspector-General of Police, Khalid Ismail, called for the police force to utilize and adopt AI and digitalization to enhance service delivery.

AI tools, according to Sundramoorthy, can transform criminal investigations by processing and linking data and evidence to solve cases. "AI can help arrange, categorize, and link this information, allowing investigations to spend more time on human aspects: interviewing witnesses, assessing credibility, determining intent, validating evidence, and building cases," he emphasized.

Sundramoorthy stressed that AI should assist, not replace, police judgment. "Malaysia should not wait until criminals become technologically superior to the institutions responsible for countering them. The objective is a human-centric police force strengthened by AI, not a police force controlled by machines," he said. Police officers need to be trained in AI usage, while the relevant unit should establish protocols for AI-generated information to ensure it serves as guidance and not direct statements.