Data mining and the search for security: Challenges for connecting the dots and databases

Data mining is emerging as one of the key features of many homeland security initiatives. Often used as a means for detecting fraud, assessing risk, and product retailing, data mining involves the use of data analysis tools to discover previously unknown, valid patterns and relationships in large data sets. In the context of homeland security, data mining is often viewed as a potential means to identify terrorist activities, such as money transfers and communications, and to identify and track individual terrorists themselves, such as through travel and immigration records. However, compared to earlier uses of data mining by government, some of the homeland security data mining applications represent a significant expansion in the quantity and scope of data to be analyzed. Three of the higher profile initiatives include the now defunct Terrorism Information Awareness (TIA) project, the recently canceled Computer-Assisted Passenger Prescreening System II (CAPPS II), and the Multistate Anti-Terrorism Information Exchange (MATRIX) pilot project. This article examines the evolving nature of data mining for homeland security purposes, the limitations of data mining, and some of the issues raised by its expanding use, including data quality, interoperability, mission creep, and privacy. Published by Elsevier Inc. 0740-624X/$ see front matter. Published by Elsevier Inc. doi:10.1016/j.giq.2004.08.006 $ The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Library of Congress or the Congressional Research Services. * Fax: +1 202 707 0781. E-mail address: [email protected]. Government Information Quarterly 21 (2004) 461–480