Crime scene: the Internet – Research can make police work more efficient

Published: 9 September 2025

Reading time: 2 minutes

Sexual abuse of children via the internet is difficult to investigate. Can the police and academia together streamline and develop new methods to combat and prevent these crimes?

Already in 2021, the police had more than 13,000 reports of child pornography waiting to be investigated. Just last year, more than 10,000 new cases were added.

Can collaboration between different areas of police expertise make investigations more efficient? This is being examined in a Forte-funded ongoing project. Together with the Swedish police, researchers are developing and testing a new method of collaboration.

– If the project can make even a small contribution that streamlines investigative flows, there will be major gains for both society and victims, says Oscar Rantatalo, project leader and Associate Professor of Education at Umeå University.

Developing new methods for investigations

Investigations of internet-related child sexual abuse require several different types of specialist expertise and can also be psychologically demanding. The researchers are studying how investigators can collaborate more effectively in order to shorten investigation times and promote a more sustainable work environment.

– With effective collaboration, more time can also be devoted to crime prevention and to identifying the children in the images. It would be of enormous benefit if more children could be removed from abuse, says Oscar.

With effective collaboration, more time can be devoted to identifying the children in the images.

Oscar Rantatalo

Associate professor of education at Umeå University. Photo: Ulrika Sahlén

Through workshops, workplace visits, and interviews, the researchers have identified both challenges and success factors in investigations. Oscar stresses the advantage of co-creation research being based on real needs identified in practice – and the fact that results can be applied directly.

– When practice and research spin together, and we are attentive to the recurring problems of professional practice, we get momentum and can conduct relevant research, he says.

At the same time, this type of research also poses certain challenges, although Oscar considers the benefits to far outweigh them.

– Co-creation relies heavily on trust and preparation. We were able to carry out the project thanks to contacts we had already established in previous research projects.

Co-creation research with direct benefit to practice

Lars Wahlberg, Deputy Regional Police Chief in Police Region North and a participant in the project, emphasizes how important it is for academia and practice to work together to find effective solutions to complex problems.

– Within the police, we have every reason to collaborate with academia; otherwise, we are left to ourselves to figure out how we should work. If we are to become an effective authority, we must make more explicit and strategic use of research.

The benefits outweigh the costs – the sacrifice is small.

Lars Wahlberg

Deputy regional police chief, Police region North

Although the challenge lies in making time for this kind of work in an already pressured organization, Lars believes it is worthwhile to gain new knowledge and find more efficient ways of working.

– The benefits outweigh the costs – the sacrifice is small. At the same time, we can become even more precise and investigate crimes more effectively. Sometimes we may intuitively think we should act one way, but research can show that another way produces better results in the long run.

Knowledge that can change more than one area of crime

Lars also sees potential for broader benefits from the child pornography project, as its lessons could also be applied to investigations of other types of crime.

– One might think that this particular area of crime is quite specific. But there are many important principles here that will be useful across the board. Not least in the fight against serious organized crime, which also requires large-scale collaboration, he says.

Ebba Arnborg (English translation by Forte)