Technology to Combat Illicit Trafficking of Cultural Goods
Four police authorities, two border agencies, a police school, companies, and research institutes specialized in cultural heritage and integrated telecommunication systems and cybersecurity protocols: these are the partners of the consortium coordinated by the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) that will lead the RITHMS project (Research, Intelligence and Technology for Heritage and Market Security) funded by the European Union. Over the coming years, RITHMS aims to enhance the operational capabilities of law enforcement, customs, and border authorities in tackling the illicit trafficking of cultural goods, while investigating the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon.
The illicit trafficking of cultural goods has evolved from being a local phenomenon, limited to the actions of a few individuals, to becoming a highly organized activity that generates substantial income for criminal organizations and terrorist groups. These entities have exploited the opportunities presented by the web and social media to expand an already thriving market. In this context, RITHMS proposes an interdisciplinary approach, necessitated by the transnational nature of these crimes. The project will span from art market analysis to criminology, legal studies to forensic science, to create an AI-based platform capable of identifying organized criminal networks and providing investigators with valuable information about their activities and potential evolution. The platform will leverage the power of Social Network Analysis (SNA), a methodology that enables a better understanding of individuals engaged in illicit trafficking through their relationships and interactions.
The project has received funding of 5 million euros from the European Union under the Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Framework Programme [agreement number 101073932]. RITHMS is coordinated by Arianna Traviglia, head of the Centre for Cultural Heritage Technology at IIT in Venice.
“The extensive consortium ensures that the RITHMS project benefits from a broad range of expertise,” explains Arianna Traviglia, “with specialized partners in both information technologies and legal and cultural human sciences. Furthermore, the participation of a diverse group of law enforcement agencies operating in different countries will enable the digital RITHMS platform to be based on robust and detailed procedural and legal indications, adapting its functionalities to work at a supra-national level.”
The list of partners includes: Italian Institute of Technology (coordinator), StAG srl (Italy), VTT – Technical Research Centre of Finland (Finland), European Software Institute – Central Eastern Europe (Bulgaria), RiniGARD DOO ZA USLUGE (Croatia), Houston Analytics (Finland), BEIA Consult International srl (Romania), SatCen – European Union Satellite Centre (Spain), Universidade da Coruña (Spain), Hochschule für den öffentlichen Dienst in Bayern (Germany), European Institute Foundation (Bulgaria), Ministry of Defense, with the Carabinieri Command for the Protection of Cultural Heritage (Italy), Spanish National Police (with the Historical Heritage Brigade), Dutch National Police, Bulgarian Border Police, Moldovan Police, Border Police of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The project also involves the Art Crime Project-APS association (Italy) as an Affiliated Entity and Conceptivity sarl (Switzerland) as an Associated Partner.
