Security through Research, Technology and Innovation

On 20 November 2020, UNICRI held the virtual meeting “Supply chain security: food fraud”. The meeting was organized by the UNICRI Knowledge Center Security through Research, Technology and Innovation (SIRIO) in Geneva.

The Hague, 20 November. On 20 November the world celebrates World Children's Day, which marks the anniversary of the date that the United Nations General Assembly adopted both the Declaration of the Rights of the Child.

Europol, UNICRI and Trend Micro uncover current and future threats of AI and how to combat them

Stop the virus of disinformation: the malicious use of social media by terrorist, violent extremist and criminal groups during the COVID-19 pandemic.  

Risks and technology options 

The Report describes how terrorist, violent extremist and organized criminal groups are trying to take advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to expand their activities and jeopardize the efficacy and credibility of response measures by governments. 

On 19 November 2020, Interpol and Europol will organize a debriefing of their joint operation against counterfeit food and beverages, and substandard food and beverages.

The operation is called Opson and in 2020 has reached its 9th edition. Almost 80 countries participated in the initiative from all regions of the world.

Within the context of the Canada-funded project, "Global Biosecurity Risk Analysis and Needs Assessment", UNICRI, in coordination with the Public Health Agency of Canada, produced a series of reports identifying national and regional priorities for biological security capacity building. 

Focusing on three target regions, including South East Asia, the Middle East and South America, the reports are based on an analysis of relevant international needs assessment instruments and action plans, complemented by data generated through custom surveys and expert interviews.  

On 4 November 2020, UNICRI, in cooperation with the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), held the 4th INB virtual meeting of the International Network on Biotechnology (INB). Network partners participating in the meeting represented universities and research institutes from 11 countries.

Message from the Director of UNICRI: Antonia Marie De Meo.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is fundamentally changing how we live, how we work, how we communicate, and how we move around. It is transforming our world socially, economically and politically.  The potential is boundless, but the risks are also growing.