Abstract
The future European Champions League final which is going to take place in London in May 2011 sets new tasks before BIF specialists who deal with the hooligan groups in the UK. The main idea of this report is to consider possible solution to the information systematization from different countries via the computer system.
This computer system is aimed at collecting, evaluating, analyzing and disseminating information before it is used by the BIF specialists. The program is rather useful and may reduce specialists’ time on dealing with the information.
Still, many obstacles may be faced while implementing it. Thus, the computer system should be created, but before this the information should be collected, the work planned and the difficulties analysed. This report dwells upon those aspects.
Introduction
People got used to the information technologies which became an essential part of their life. It is impossible to imagine the modern world without those facilities. Omitting the part where informational technologies help people communicate with each other, search for information and entertain, it should be mentioned that the information technologies are helpful in more serious affairs.
First of all, information technologies help people run business, enter into cooperation with different companies worldwide and support human security. It is important to remember that all the security systems of any organisation are based on the innovative technologies. All the video cameras in different organisations are connected to the computer systems which help follow the situation.
Moreover, there are a number of different computer systems which help collect and analyse information in such a way that it may be used in catching some criminal groups further.
The main purpose of this report is to provide the analysis and express personal opinion on the computer system which may be helpful for collecting, analysing, and disseminating information more effectively and efficiently than it was made before, relating it to the future European Champions League final which is going to take place in London in May 2011.
The main purpose of this computer program is going to be the more effective identification of the hooligan groups and their organisation with the purpose to reduce the violation actions.
Initial Thoughts on the Feasibility of the Proposed System
When the Home Secretary asked me to conduct a research and write a report devoted to the computer system directed at the improving the situation within hooligan groups up to the European Champions League final in May, 2010 in London, I thought that the task is rather complicated, but due to the modern technologies it is feasible.
Thus, the Home Secretary wants to consider whether it is possible to create a system which would help BIF specialists make decisions on the basis of the collected, analysed and disseminated information which is going to be generated by the “fully computerised system”.
The proposed system is feasible, still the concise purpose and utilisation of the system should be carefully considered. It should be noted that the European countries have already created such systems, that is why it is unnecessary to dwell upon the importance and the convenience of the similar systems in other countries.
I suppose that it would be useful to create such system which would help BIF specialists collect and arrange information. It would reduce their time on the operations mentioned above and would increase it for judgment and functioning. My personal initial judgment of the proposed system is that it would not too difficult to create it, and at the same time it is going to be extremely useful.
But, the necessary computer system design is not the only thing which should be completed. After the system is utilised, the system designers should think about its security. This is one of the first things which I thought about when I became to check the controversial points to the proposed system feasibility.
The information is of unique importance and should be properly protected as the hooligan groups in the United Kingdom have rather useful relationships with international hooligan groups and are linked with some right-wing political groups.
This causes some problems for the proposed system feasibility, still, it may be corrected. The computerisation of the collected information is an ideal tool for processing that data. It is important to remember that the information processed in this way should comprise only the part of the decision.
The Kind of Information to Seek, the Sources to Seek It from, and the Fact Finding Methods to Employ in Order to Get it, in Order to Gain A Full Appreciation of the Problem Situation
Before getting down to designing a proposed system a thorough research should be conducted. On the basis of the main idea of the further system, we should check what functions it should perform. The problem seems rather easy, still, the supporting clarifications and elaborations may cause a number of problems.
First of all, it is important to understand what kind of the information we are going to collect. The design of the system should be based on this information as well as on facts where this information should be collected.
Thus, system requires the information about the members of hooligan gangs, their names, address, places of their work, family, interests and contact information. These facts will help the BIF specialists identify the psychological type of each person and implement some actions which could prevent them from violence.
Moreover, the collection of this information may help BIF specialists get to know the further plans of the hooligan groups and prevent those in the European Champions League final in London. Moreover, it should be remembered that it is not so easy to gather this information. The UK services should contact their colleagues in other countries and ask them to get access to the protected information about hooligan groups.
The channels via which the information is going to be delivered should be properly protected. Furthermore, it may be useful to check different social networks for the useful information. Facebook may contain some information about the friends and the future events the groups plan. The contacts may be considered from these nets as well.
The BIF specialists may use the information they manage to get from the reliable sources delivered to UK and European police forces. All the information mentioned above and the sources where it may be considered should be properly understood while computerisation of the information and creating a system requires from the designers to be strict and attentive.
It is also important to remember about the technology and the equipment, necessary for proper functioning of the system: hardware, software, databases, telecommunications, network, and the Internet, people, and procedures. Thus, it may be concluded that it is necessary appreciate all the facts mentioned and correlate those with the system design.
Even the slightest change in the source of the information may change the effectiveness and efficiency of the work. It is also remember the stages according to which the work on the computer system is going to be completed as about one of the ways to understand the problems situation, feasibility, analysis, design, implementation, test, and maintenance.
A List of Personal Thoughts on the Task Which Has Been Asked to Undertake
The Difficulties Which Might Be Faced
There are a number of problems we may face while designing the computer system for information collection and analysis. One of the first problems is the equipment. The implementation of such a great plan requires high quality equipment which will be able to support the necessary software. The information protection may be a great challenge for the system.
There are so many different threats on the Internet, starting with the viruses which may attack the system, and finishing with the computer hacker who may crack the computer program and avoid the authorised access to the system.
Moreover, the information leakage may prevent the proper work of the system as well as some problems which may appear at the testing stage. One more difficulty which may be faced is my inability to get the whole information as limited access is a guaranty for the project’s success.
The Suitability of the Resources at the Disposal
The resources which the organisation has in disposal are huge. All the European organisations which work with hooligan groups are ready to provide it with the information for the sake of the human security from hooligan groups and the violence actions they usually provide. Moreover, the information resources are suitable. Still, it is impossible to say the same about the equipment.
On the one hand, I do not have access to some facts which are protected due to the security considerations. On the other hand, I may say that the computer equipment which was used before did not require such high standards, so it is natural that the organisation does not have it. Thus, it is impossible to say that computer equipment as well as software is suitable for now.
Recommendations to Make to the Home Secretary with Regard to This Proposed System
There are a number of recommendations I want to provide the Home Secretary with. First, it is necessary to employ the computer specialists who are going to deal with the computer design of the system and the implementation of the ideas considered above. Second, the costs should be considered, both on the sole costs and constant costs aimed at supporting and serving the equipment and software.
The contacts with organisations which deal with the hooligan groups in different countries should be established. The principles of the computer system design should be followed in order to protect it from any of the problems which may appear, like the problems with “emergent properties, propagation of effects, incommensurate scaling, and trade-offs” (Saltzer & Kaashoek 2009, p. 3).
Moreover, it is obvious that the information should be kept in secret. The authorised access to the folders with the information should be integral part of each operation. Furthermore, those who deal with the information should be people checked for devotion to the organisation and professionalism.
Conclusion
In conclusion it should be noted that the main focus of the report is to provide the reader with the information about the organisation and the problems it tries to cope with. The design of the computer system aimed at information computerisation may help in faster collection and analysis of the information as well as its quality dissemination.
Thus, this program may reduce time and efforts spend on this facility and increase the time for judgment and applying actions. The program should be ready up to the European Champions League final which will take place in London in May 2011. There are a number of problems the project developers may face, still it is possible to overcome those.
Turning to the assumptions which have been made, I want to add that the struggle against hooligan groups in the UK is the responsibility of each citizen and if anyone gets to know about the planned cases he/she should tell about it to the police forces. The organisation responsibility is to create the program ant to use it with the purpose to eliminate the hooligan cases on the territory of the UK.
References
Saltzer, J. H. & Kaashoek, F., 2009. Principles of computer system design: an introduction. 1st ed. San Francisco (CA): Morgan Kaufmann.