Indiana State University has been selected as a partner with the Vigo County Prosecutor’s Office in establishing a High Tech Crime Unit to serve eight counties in the area.
Indiana State University has been selected as a partner with the Vigo County Prosecutor’s Office in establishing a High Tech Crime Unit to serve eight counties in the area.
The selection means ISU cyber criminology students will have even more experiences with state-of-the-art equipment, software, training, and working on real cases. The equipment will be housed in the School of Criminology and Security Studies.
The Indiana legislature voted last year to fund 10 such High Tech Crime Units covering every county in the state. Each unit has a higher education partner.
Prosecutors will work with local law enforcement and college students to analyze and process digital evidence.
“The result will be faster turnaround for investigations and more thorough investigations, leading to more just outcomes for everyone involved in the legal system,” IPAC said in announcing the news. “With these new high tech crime units, every county and every prosecutor office will have access to state-of-the-art technology that they previously have not had access too.”
Dr. Jason James, Instructor of Cybersecurity, said ISU already has three students who were sworn in to work on real cases with the Vigo County Prosecutor’s Office.
“This is a game changer in the field of cybercrime for the state of Indiana,” James said. “We now have the capability to train future digital forensics investigators while at the same time joining forces with local law enforcement to eliminate backlog and turnaround cases in a shorter period of time. That allows local law enforcement to focus on apprehending criminals.”
Said Dr. Christopher Olsen, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs: “This is an amazing opportunity for students, in such a high-demand area for employment, to work in the field with other professionals to get critical hands-on experience. It’s a tremendous combination of working with world-class faculty in the classroom and with law enforcement on real cases. They’ll be able to finish a degree with this on their resume, which will be a tremendous boost as they enter the job market.”
Media contacts:
Mark Alesia, Director of University Communication
(O) 812-237-3837
(C) 812-229-8020
mark.alesia@indstate.edu
Dianne Powell, Associate Director of University Communication
(O) 812-237-8764
(C) 812-878-2131
DianneFrances.Powell@indstate.edu