File : About INTERPOL

COM/FS/2012/EDU02
EDUCATIONAL RESOURCE
About INTERPOL
ffPolice-work on the ground
INTERPOL is the International
Criminal Police Organization.
It helps to make the world
a safer place by linking
together police in almost
every country in the world.
Police use our databases
to share information,
communicate via our online
system, send out “notices”
or alerts about criminals, and
can ask for assistance any
time of day or night through
our 24-hour command centre.
Despite popular ideas about INTERPOL, we don’t have secret agents travelling undercover
around the world like James Bond! But we do help police to carry out important and
sometimes very dangerous investigations and operations.
We run a 24-hour Command and Coordination Centre which can assist countries with
a crisis situation and we can send specialized teams to help. These teams offer expert
assistance to local police following events such as a drug seizure or a bombing. Other
teams can help plan and support the security arrangements for major events such as
the Olympic Games.
We also spend a lot of time training law enforcement staff across the world so that
police are equipped with the latest technology, techniques and practices.
As part of their daily investigations and checks, police often need to verify quickly
whether a passport is stolen or whether a fingerprint matches a known criminal.
INTERPOL manages a number of different databases that can return results within
seconds, wherever and whenever the search is carried out. These databases contain
information supplied by police forces in many different countries and include details
about criminals (such as photos, fingerprints and DNA profiles), crime activities (such
as terrorism and child sexual abuse) and stolen items (such as travel documents, motor
vehicles and works of art).
ffHigh-tech communications
Many crimes take place across several countries – for example, drugs are smuggled from
South America to Europe via Africa – so it’s important that law enforcement agencies
across the world communicate with each other to help catch these criminals. To do this,
they need to have access to shared systems and information.
We operate a global police communications network, called I-24/7. It’s a high-tech
online system that allows police to send messages and top secret information securely
and to check information in our databases.
For instance, in a true example, police in Monaco found fingerprints at a crime scene,
ran a check in INTERPOL’s database, discovered the identity of the criminal and the fact
that he was linked to crimes in Serbia and, in addition, that he was wanted by police in
another five European countries.
INTERPOL then published a Red Notice for this criminal – this is an international wanted
persons notice that puts all member countries on the lookout for the individual with a
view to his arrest.
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CONNECTING P OLICE FOR A SAFER WOR LD
About INTERPOL
ffAn international presence
INTERPOL’s General Secretariat (or headquarters) is located in Lyon, France, and we have
regional offices in Argentina, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, El Salvador, Kenya, Thailand and
Zimbabwe, with another under construction in Singapore. A total of 190 countries are
members of INTERPOL and they each run a National Central Bureau which forms an
important network for worldwide police investigations.
ffFind out more
StudentZone is an educational website aimed at 13-18 year olds, designed to teach
students about INTERPOL’s role in international policing and how it works with its
member countries to keep people safe. Available in English, French, Spanish and Arabic, it
also features an interactive game where the player is taken through a series of challenges
based on the different types of crime that INTERPOL fights every day.
Teachers interested in covering INTERPOL in the classroom will find complete learning
points from the game, as well as additional fact sheets and resources that can be
incorporated into the curriculum.
ff To learn more about INTERPOL:
visit StudentZone, an interactive website
created specifically for young people:
www.interpol.int/StudentZone
ff Twitter: @INTERPOL_HQ
@INTERPOL_EDU
ff YouTube: INTERPOLHQ
ff www.interpol.int
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