e-Learning goes cyber-criminology

Enforcing security is very much alive worldwide, more with governments’ resolve to protect innocent civilians against the threat of terrorism and crime. More than geopolitical preparation relative to military resource capability, several law enforcement agencies have also invested in training to ensure that law enforcers are more than equipped to handle crime detection and probing. In fact, borders that ought to be protected have surpassed the physical sense, specifically within cyberspace.

While the Internet brought advantages in terms of an information stream that can be accessed over the Web, criminals have also used this medium to prey on unsuspecting victims from children to adults, corporations to government agencies, both in the domestic and international scene. Among the most common include Internet-based fraud, child exploitation, and money laundering, to name a few. Given this, Internet law enforcement investigators recognized the need to be updated with information technology, flexing resources to better equip learners on how to detect and prevent computer-related crimes.

Armed with its thrust to bring quality criminology education, former Supreme Court (SC) Justice Felix Angelo Bautista established in 1954 the Philippine College of Criminology (PCCr) — now known as Manila Law College — to provide scientific learning methods in crime detection, investigation, law knowledge and enforcement, among others. Since then, the institution has grown organically into allied undertakings, providing a degree in Bachelor of Science in Criminology. Here, course offerings vary from Police Science or Criminalistics (questioned documents, dactyloscopy, investigative photography, ballistics, polygraphy and criminal interrogation), Criminal Law and Jurisprudence, Law Enforcement Administration, Criminal Sociology, Corrections or Penology, Police Ethics, Probation, Computers Science to other Liberal Arts subjects.

Since Bautista’s demise in the 1990s, the stewardship was passed on to his son, Dr. Eduardo J. Bautista, who steered Manila Law College’s subsequent growth. Part of his milestones covered the construction of a new 10-story building in 2002 from the previous nine, and a four-story tower that provided 36 additional classrooms. Today, Manila Law College is equipped with a complete library for criminology students and provides licensure examinations, among others.

Yet, milestones are not complete unless one is able to keep abreast with the tech-related challenges of the 21st century. Manila Law College opted to advance its course offerings, not just in the Philippines, but in Asia as well. Believing in the concept of “re-inventing,” the institution now offers computer courses and relevant education programs through its partnership with 2StudyIT. Here, learners are made to fully understand basic computer knowledge, forensic software training, digital evidence recovery, set-up of approval hierarchy, recognizing compressed and encrypted data, stegangraphy and data encryption, among others. Such initiative was lauded by President Arroyo during the institution’s Golden Alumni Homecoming, highlighting its transformation in terms of expanded courses in cyber-criminology.

From the above, one can see that traditional classroom-based processes are best complemented by IT applications, specifically when it comes to specialized courses on criminology. By aiming for technical proficiency, 2StudyIT complements Manila Law College’s vision in bridging advancements to learners that are applicable to real-life settings. The incidence of theft is best avoided when one is able to equip law enforcers with skills to prevent a contemplated crime. Sharper competence provides greater depth and confidence for criminal justice probers in carrying out their call for protection.

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