Warning: Undefined variable $num in /home/shroutdo/public_html/courses/wp-content/plugins/single-categories/single_categories.php on line 126

Warning: Undefined variable $posts_num in /home/shroutdo/public_html/courses/wp-content/plugins/single-categories/single_categories.php on line 127

In the article, “Using Metadata to find Paul Revere”, data is used to find suspected individuals involved with terror groups in the 18th century within the Colonies of the United States. To do so, they used a “beta of PRISM has been used to collect and analyze information on more than two hundred and sixty persons (of varying degrees of suspicion) belonging variously to seven different organizations in the Boston area.” From there, various networks and connections were made among people and organizations. This data, at first, was very difficult to condense and use purposely. “Links between people and some other kind of thing, like attendance at various events, or membership in various groups” were used to start this type of analysis and provided the framework for networks. The article notes that there could be some inaccuracies and biases with this data, but a very simple and straightfoward method has the ability to “pick the name of a traitor like Paul Revere from those of two hundred and fifty four other men, using nothing but a list of memberships and a portable calculating engine.”

In CM-A’s article, “Secret Agent Paul”, the author makes comparison with this type of analysis to a FBI movie scene where we look into a blurry security cam. It is extremely fascinating to think that data has the ability to identify criminals by connecting their past activity and involvement among different organizations and individuals.