Electronic Facial Identification Technique (E-FIT, e-fit, efit) is a computer-based method of producing facial composites of wanted criminal(s), based on eyewitness descriptions.[1] It can include clothing.[2]
History
editUses
editThe system first appeared in the late 1980s, programmed by John Platten and has since been progressively refined by Platten and latterly by Matthew Maylin.[5] E-FIT has developed a reputation as a highly reliable and flexible system for feature-based composite construction.[6]
Customers for this system exist in over 30 countries around the world. These include the Metropolitan Police Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), the New York Police Department, the Stockholm Police, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Jamaica Constabulary Force.
E-FIT is used both for minor and serious crimes. In the United Kingdom, it was an ever-present feature on the BBC's Crimewatch television programme.[7] The system is available in multiple languages.[8]
The widespread use of the original E-FIT approach is gradually being superseded by a new version of the program called EFIT-V.[9] EFIT-V is a full-colour, hybrid system that offers increased flexibility and speed, allowing the face to be constructed using both evolutionary and systematic construction techniques.[10][11]
Efficacy
editThe E-FIT, Pro-fit, and similar systems used in the UK have been subjected to a number of formal academic examinations.[12] In these studies, volunteers were able to identify the person in the composite about 20% of the time if the composite was prepared immediately after viewing the subject. However, one study found that if witnesses were required to wait two days before constructing a composite, which matches real-life applications more closely, success rates fell to between 3 and 8 per cent.[13]
References
edit- ↑ "The problem with e-fits". BBC News. 24 September 2010.
- ↑ "In e-fits of laughter: Farcical faces from the police". BBC News. 5 February 2016.
- ↑ "If the face fits . . . it's probably by computer". The Independent. 6 August 1994.
- ↑ https://www.ft.com/content/4d19bcde-a67b-11e4-9bd3-00144feab7de.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ Lawrence, Paul (September 2020). "Policing, 'Science', and the Curious Case of Photo-Fit". The Historical Journal. 63 (4): 1007–1031. doi:10.1017/S0018246X19000530. ISSN 0018-246X.
- ↑ Association, Press (21 September 2010). "Police release e-fit of 'lettuce head' burglary suspect". The Guardian.
- ↑ "Katrice Lee: Army refuses to say if e-fit is years old". BBC News. 28 February 2017.
- ↑ "Hampshire police release 'lettuce' e-fit of suspect". BBC News. 21 September 2010.
- ↑ Davis, Josh P.; Sulley, Lucy; Solomon, Chris; Gibson, Stuart (September 2010). "A Comparison of Individual and Morphed Facial Composites Created Using Different Systems". 2010 International Conference on Emerging Security Technologies. pp. 56–60. doi:10.1109/EST.2010.29. ISBN 978-1-4244-7845-3.
- ↑ Frowd, Charlie D.; Portch, Emma; Killeen, Abigail; Mullen, Lydia; Martin, Alexander J.; Hancock, Peter J. B. (July 2019). "EvoFIT Facial Composite Images: A Detailed Assessment of Impact on Forensic Practitioners, Police Investigators, Victims, Witnesses, Offenders and the Media" (PDF). 2019 Eighth International Conference on Emerging Security Technologies (EST). pp. 1–7. doi:10.1109/EST.2019.8806211. ISBN 978-1-7281-5546-3.
- ↑ "The evolution of the photofit". The Economist.
- ↑ https://www.storre.stir.ac.uk/bitstream/1893/720/1/Frowd_Changing%20the%20face2008.pdf.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ Frowd, Charlie D.; Carson, Derek; Ness, Hayley; McQuiston-Surrett, Dawn; Richardson, Jan; Baldwin, Hayden; Hancock, Peter (February 2005). "Contemporary composite techniques: The impact of a forensically-relevant target delay". Legal and Criminological Psychology. 10 (1): 63–81. doi:10.1348/135532504X15358. S2CID 58864612.