Burglaries are a continuous threat to our safety and society. Increasingly we are trying to understand how the typical burglar thinks and works to try to prevent this type of criminal behavior. What is needed to deter a burglar from committing a burglary? How do we detect imminent burglary behavior so we act upon it?

In a collaboration between Jean-Louis van Gelder (UTwente / Max Planck Instituut), Henk Elffers (VU/NSCR), Guido Delver (DITTS) and the Network Institute’s Tech Labs the effects of Smart Technology to prevent burglary will be studied. Using a virtual environment representing an actual neighbourhood in Rotterdam, several different ways to deter burglars from preforming a crime will be tested.
This study in the virtual world is a part of a larger study which also involves the police force and aims to implement sensor technology in neighbourhoods. Then to develop smart algorithms that can detect suspicious behavior to trigger a set of signals to deter the criminal from acting.

The project will be tested (hopefully) in prisons and under a control group starting February 2020.

For more information (Dutch) about the burglary-free neighbourhood, please click here.

This study is funded by the Dutch Ministry of Justice and Safety.