Technology driven crimmigration? Function creep and mission creep in Dutch migration control

Abstract

As migration is increasingly seen as a matter of security, migration control and crime control seem to be merging, a process also referred to as crimmigration. To distinguish between migrants that are wanted and those who are not, new technologies are introduced regularly and existing technologies are increasingly interconnected. This could lead to what is called function creep: technology developed for a specific purpose over time being used for other purposes as well. This article aims to explore the relation between crimmigration and function creep by examining a case study of a smart camera system called Amigo-boras used by the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee. While originally designed to assist in enforcing migration law, recent developments allow the RNM to use Amigo-boras for crime control purposes as well. This article will uncover what the rationales behind this function creep in the use of the Amigo-Boras system are/wereboth from a street-level and policy-level perspectiveand how these relate to crimmigration. The data shows that concerns of cross-border crime are an important reason to use Amigo-boras for more than just migration control. As a result, a significant element of crime control is introduced in Dutch migration control, pushing the crimmigration process further. ARTICLE HISTORY

Politics of creep: Latent development, technology monitoring, and the evolution of the Schengen Information System

“…Generally speaking, the idea of creep expresses concern or warnings against the expansion of the functionality of technical systems, 32 surveillance capacities, 33 control capabilities, 34 or policy goals. 35 Authors have paired the notion of creep with a multiplicity of different concepts, resulting in terminological variety that includes the likes of function creep, scope creep, feature creep, mission creep, competence creep, authority creep, regulation creep, interest creep, surveillance creep, or control creep. 36 Wisman has, for example, used the terms function creep and purpose creep in relation to the tendency to repurpose data in ways that differ from the initial intent underpinning their collection.…”

Securitizing mobility: Profiling ‘non-core’ Europeans

“…As part of efforts to make migration control more efficient and effective, the use of surveillance technology has become an important part of controlling who can and cannot cross borders. Systems like the Schengen Information System, the Visa Information System and EURODAC have taken on key roles in efforts to combat irregular migration and cross-border crime, and travellers are surveilled by digital databases such as those of the Advance Passenger Information (API) and Passenger Name Records (PNR) systems (Aas, 2011; Adey, 2012; Broeders, 2007; Brouwer, 2011; Dekkers, 2020). Many systems function as a filter, attempting to categorize (groups of) individuals on the basis of the level of (future) risk that they potentially pose.…”

“…In addition, it concerns the quality and technical capabilities of the border surveillance system, the increasing introduction of biometrics, increases in interoperability, the growing trend towards predictive forms of analysis, the growing number of actors who have access to the data and the general improvement in processing capabilities in the information technology sector (Huber, 2020: 192). Dekkers (2020) has problematized the increase of interoperability – the sharing of information – in the context of migration control in the European Union by addressing the notion of function creep: ‘the expansion of a process or system, where data collected for a specific purpose is subsequently used for another unintended or unauthorized purpose’ (Mordini and Massari, 2008: 490). For instance, the EURODAC system that started as a fingerprint database to enable identification of asylum-seekers and irregular immigrants is now also used in the ‘war on terrorism’ (Besters and Brom, 2010; Tzanou, 2010).…”

Hyper-Collection: A Possible New Paradigm in Modern Surveillance

“…For example, we tacitly or unconsciously accept that we will be watched by cameras in a grocery store to prevent fraud or theft; however, we would rail against the use of that footage for reality entertainment or tabloid media reporting (Kininmonth et al 2018: 7). This focus on outcomes cites hyper-collection as a challenge to privacy ex ante as well as ex post (Backman 2012;Dekkers 2020).…”