First RespondXR: Digital vulnerability of immersive training for first responders
1 November 2021 - 28 February 2022
Project team
Dr Leonie Tanczer
Principal Investigator
Lecturer in International Security and Emerging Technologies, University College London
Professor David McIlhatton
Co-Investigator
Professor of Protective Security and Resilience and Director of the Institute for Peace and Security, Coventry University
Professor Jill Marshall
Co-Investigator
Professor of Law, Royal Holloway University of London
Dr Mark McGill
Co-Investigator
Lecturer in Human-Computer Interaction, University of Glasgow
Dr Lena Podoletz
Co-Investigator
Research Fellow in Emotional AI and Smart Cities, University of Edinburgh.
Niamh Healy
Research Assistant
PhD Candidate at the Department of Computer Science, University College London.
Marina Heilbrunn
Research Assistant - Legal
County Court Advocate and Tutor at Bloomsbury Law Tutors.
Summary
In their role as first responders, police services in England provide immediate assistance to individuals at a scene of emergency and/or potential criminal event. However, the significant reduction in policing resources since 2010 has demanded officers to work more broadly in response to the diverse range of incidents. Therefore, training needs and settings must be not only varied, but efficient as well as effective.
Extended Reality (XR), including both virtual and augmented reality, is becoming prominent in many sectors for training and operations. Yet, in the rush to exploit the benefits of XR for immersive training, the potential digital vulnerabilities that may be exposed have yet to be properly examined. RespondXR will consequently, for the first time, map the vulnerability space (i.e., its social, technical, legal, ethical risks and impacts), from the perspective of (a) those delivering the training, (b) the first responders who will be undertaking this training, and (c) the technical teams bringing forward new training methodologies in XR.
The project will explore the socio-technical challenges posed by the adoption of this technology, providing the foundations for further research on the safe, secure, and ethical use of immersive training technology for enhancing the response of policing in England.
Outputs
Timeline of XR use by Police in England and Wales:
Geographical Overview of XR use by Police in England and Wales First:
Download all the graphics at once here.
Online Mind Map:
Explore an online map that summarises the vulnerabilities we identified in the use of XR for police training here.
Blog Posts:
First RespondXR: Digital vulnerability of immersive training for first responder by Niamh Healy
Extended Reality and First Responder Training – Law, Policing and Good Guidance by Jill Marshall, Marina Heilbrunn, and Mark McGill
Research paper:
'A Critical Review of Virtual and Extended Reality Immersive Police Training: Application Areas, Benefits & Vulnerabilities' by Podoletz, L., McGill, M., McIlhatton, D., Marshall, J., Healy, N., & Tanczer, L. (2024).
Impact
Our project explored the socio-technical challenges posed by the adoption of XR technology in police training. Through our scoping review, informal interviews and legal analysis, we were able to provide the foundations for further research on the safe, secure, and ethical use of immersive training for enhancing the response of policing in England and Wales.
We closely worked with UK policy officials (College of Policing, the Open Innovation Team, and the UK Home Office) and created resources that are practical for those involved in the procurement of training. These resources will outlive the project and guarantee sustained impact and influence in decision making.
Future work
Our team is currently working on at least one, if not two/three academic, peer-reviewed publications. These are to be submitted to outlets such as “Policing and Society”. We are further considering applying for follow-up funding to assess mediation strategies for the digital vulnerabilities that we were able to expose in the course of this project.