Roux, Claude --- "Editorial: Challenges and opportunities of society's digital transformation" [2020] PrecedentAULA 1; (2020) 156 Precedent 2

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CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES OF THE DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION OF SOCIETY

By Dr Claude Roux

The articles in this edition explore the increasing relevance of the interface between law and science.

Ongoing and rapid scientific developments, including those that have delivered the digital transformation of our society, are features of modern life which have undeniable benefits but have also presented questions about how they can and should be used. For example, through our use of digital technologies, we constantly leave high-volume traces of our identities and activities. Think about your online activity through social media; your online transactions; your use of contactless credit cards and travel smartcards; the geo-localisation of your mobile devices and car; or the everyday recordings made of your face and gait by security cameras in public places. This information is invaluable for those who are charged with investigating past events, and for those who develop risk strategies and policies based on such events.

Similar questions arise each time a new scientific method or field becomes available to assist in the administration of justice: What are the limitations of the technique? What are the uncertainties or the risk of errors? How do we interpret and convey the results to non-experts? When is the technology considered ‘mature’, so that we can confidently use it in a legal framework? These questions are not surprising to those who have seen the development of forensic DNA profiling in the last 30 years. But what makes recent developments more challenging is the fact that change is happening on a larger scale and in a shorter timeframe, giving rise to a multitude of privacy and ethical considerations.

The traditional approach of forensic science to quality management is ill-fitting in this world of rapid digital transformation. It is no longer appropriate to approach this topic from a solely technical perspective. In my experience, forensic science laboratories have somewhat struggled to integrate digital activities and these activities have usually been left to law enforcement agencies to organise: digital traces are identified early in an investigation, using the best technique available on the day (which may be replaced by another tomorrow). Because some of this information may end up as evidence in court much later, it is virtually impossible to 'control' the information’s quality.

Where do we go from here? A new community, encompassing peer-reviewed journals and conferences, has emerged to promote knowledge-sharing in this rapidly developing domain. The growth of this community – usually composed of computer scientists and investigators with a technical background – is significant, but not sufficient. It is increasingly recognised that the most technical field of ‘digital forensics’ must now evolve into a more complete and complex discipline called ‘digital forensic science’.

There has been significant debate about the reliability of forensic science over the last decade.^[1] As Crispino et al opined,^[2] the incorporation of digital developments will rely on the capacity of the criminal justice system to develop solid, transparent, proportionate and balanced approaches to managing our ‘information society’. However, as illustrated above, integrating digital transformation will also likely show that an exclusive focus on standard operating procedures and quality management could cause forensic science to fall short. The fundamental principles of forensic science and, more broadly, forensic science philosophy are pivotal to the reliable application of science to address questions of security and justice. Improved education and the development of an appropriate culture that is transversal to forensic science will allow us to move forward together confidently.

The 22nd Triennial Meeting of the International Association of Forensic Science, in conjunction with the 25th Symposium of the Australian & New Zealand Forensic Science Society, will be held in Sydney on 21–25 September 2020 (IAFS 2020). It is only the Meeting’s second time in Australia. Under the theme ‘Forensic Science 2020 – Where to from here?’ the Meeting will review contemporary practices and consider strategies to improve operational contributions and effectiveness in the light of current and future challenges. Visit www.iafs2020.com.au.

Dr Claude Roux is a Distinguished Professor of Forensic Science at UTS, the founding Director of the UTS Centre for Forensic Science and current President of the International Association of Forensic Sciences. EMAIL [e-mail].

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^[1] NAP, ‘Strengthening forensic science in the United States: A path forward’ (2009) Washington DC; PCAST, ‘In Forensic science in criminal courts: Ensuring scientific validity of feature-comparison methods’ (2016) Washington DC.

^[2] F Crispino, C Roux, O Delémont, O Ribaux, ‘Is the (traditional) Galilean science paradigm

well suited to forensic science?’ (2019) WIREs Forensic Sci, <https://doi.org/10.1002/wfs2.1349>.