New tech aims to tackle terror and Brexit-related hate crime
RESEARCHERS are developing new artificial intelligence to tackle a surge in hate crimes after they rose to their highest levels since records began.
It is hoped the technology will allow police and the government to pre-empt outbreaks of hate crime by monitoring online speech responding to national events including Brexit.
The Online Hate Speech Dashboard is being designed by Cardiff University researchers at its “HateLab”, a project that has been tasked with assessing the impact of national events on levels of hate crimes and speech.
Hate crime rose by 17% to reach its highest level since records began during 2017/18, with 94,098 incidents recorded by police.
Experts believe the terror attacks in Westminster, Manchester Arena, London Bridge and Finsbury Park last year were the main reasons behind the rise, and authorities are wary that the UK’s departure from the EU could trigger a further spike.
Principle investigator Professor Matthew Williams, said: “Brexit has drawn sharp divisions in society, and the seemingly impossible promises made by leave-backing MPs have created a great sense of disillusionment in millions of citizens.
“In 2019, Britain is likely to be in its most severe crisis in peacetime, and whatever the outcome, be it a second referendum, a soft-Brexit or a no-Brexit, there is concern that events will motivate more hate crime.
“As we saw following the 2016 vote, and to a more extreme extent following the 2017 terror attacks, surges in online hate speech coincided with significant increases in hate crimes offline.”
The online dashboard is being developed with the National Online Hate Crime Hub, which was announced in 2016 in response to a rapid increase in online hate speech after the EU referendum.
An additional grant will enable HateLab to assess if events of national interest lead to genuine rises in hate crime perpetration.
The HateLab research is expected to be showcased to MPs, Lords, civil servants and policymakers at an All-Party Parliamentary Group meeting at Westminster next year.