Google to help hunt for criminals

By Martha Mendoza The Associated PressArizona Daily Star
43 minutes ago • By Martha Mendoza The Associated Press

Forget videos of cute kittens or good deals on iPads. For the past few months, Google has been quietly turning its search capabilities to something far more challenging: criminals.

Drug cartels, money launderers and human traffickers run their sophisticated operations online — and Google Ideas, Google’s think tank, is working with the Council on Foreign Relations and other organizations to look for ways to use technology to disrupt international crime.

Officials from Google and groups that combat illicit networks will meet Tuesday and Wednesday in Westlake Village, Calif., to develop strategies for fighting global crime.

“Google is in a great position to take these on,” said Rani Hong, a survivor of child trafficking in India who is now a special adviser to the United Nations. “They’re a powerful medium and they have great tools to solve this problem.”

Dozens will attend the summit, including Kimmie Weeks, a former abducted child soldier from Liberia; Juan Pablo Escobar, son of slain Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar; assistant U.S. defense secretary Andrew Weber; and Brian Dodd, who directs the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s counter-terrorism and transnational crime efforts.

Google to help hunt for criminals