Jim Jones made a career of “chasing the bad guys,” and now he leads a center of excellence (COE) focused on cyber crime to support the Department of Homeland Security mission.
The Criminal Investigation and Network Analysis Center (CINA), a DHS COE led by George Mason University, provides R&D for various DHS components, including Customs and Border Protection, the Coast Guard and the Secret Service. CINA works most often with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), specifically for the Cyber Crime Center.
Much of Jones’ and CINA’s work revolves around digital forensics. CINA produces a variety of tools and “knowledge products” to help DHS catch drug cartels and cybercriminals, Jones told GovernmentCIO Media & Research.
Three of CINA’s most recent projects are ready to transition to DHS next year, like the one having to do with voice forensics. With voice forensics, researchers can take a voice recording and analyze small fluctuations like echo to determine where that person is, such as in the case of a distress call to the Coast Guard, he explained.
This voice forensics tool could have a variety of other uses across the agency.