CEASEFIRE: An AI-powered system for combatting illicit firearms trafficking

Trafficking of illicit firearms is one of the main sources of revenue for organized crime groups, while providing them the main tools for their antisocial trade: guns. Today's digital economy and breakneck technological progress have made it even more difficult for state authorities to properly control the situation. Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) face difficult challenges that were not even conceivable just a few years ago. For instance, criminals thrive in Dark Web marketplaces, which are hidden illegal e-shops that require specific URLs to access and constantly change locations to evade law enforcement. These platforms, along with cryptocurrency transactions, enable anonymous exchanges of illegal goods like firearms and drugs, complicating LEA efforts. Meanwhile, the Surface Web and social media are used by firearms traffickers for information exchange and coordination, where the vast volume of data hampers detection. Advances in 3D printing have fostered an on-line community sharing weapon blueprints, attracting criminal interest. Additionally, criminals exploit postal services to smuggle firearms, taking advantage of legal discrepancies between countries and the massive volume of daily parcels that conceal illicit goods. Lastly, identifying and matching seized firearms to international databases is challenging due to diverse weapon appearances, potential serial number tampering, and insufficient training among law enforcement practitioners.