Sex offenders’ online activity monitored by police spy apps

SOME of Britain’s most serious sex offenders are being monitored by spy apps that track their activity on their phones and computers 24/7 for suspicious behaviour.

Under the Home Office-funded scheme, the convicted sex offenders’ phones, computers and tablets are fitted with software apps that use AI to track words, images and behaviours.

Every tap of the keyboard is monitored and if a telltale word or phrase is spelt out, the software alerts police and takes a photo of the screen, storing it as evidence.

An internet history is also kept ready for inspection by officers.

It means police are alerted to any sexualised conversations, visits to unauthorised forums or viewing pornographic material.

It can also email alerts to police if it detects suspicious behaviour so they can take immediate action.

The apps are deployed under courtapproved Sexual Harm Prevention Orders. Breaches can lead to the offenders being sent back to jail or increased restrictions on their movement.

Det Insp Luke Waller, who heads a team responsible for monitoring 1,300 sex offenders, said: “By helping officers to spot breaches as early as possible, this software will help us to keep vulnerable people safe from harm.

“By recording activity, the software is capable of alerting us to behaviours that we would then need to confront.

“A good example of how this software works in practice would be a known offender searching the internet for certain types of explicit material or streaming a video shows the sexual abuse of a child.”

The app is funded by the Home Office

‘By helping officers to spot breaches early, this software will help to keep vulnerable people safe’

as a potential device that could be rolled out to forces nationwide to supplement powers that officers already have.

Monitoring officers have powers to seize and search electronic devices and visit people at random. Police can also demand to be notified when an offender forms a new relationship.

The number of convicted sex offenders has more than doubled in a decade from around 30,000 to 60,000.

The Home Office said its strategy was to extend a pilot to give law enforcement agencies improved technology to monitor sex offenders in the community.