Interpol has just launched a free smartphone application. ID-Art is a powerful and innovative digital tool to fight against the trafficking of cultural goods worldwide. This application already identifies more than 50,000 stolen artworks. Presentation of this new digital tool for the protection of heritage and cultural property.
ID-Art, an application developed by Interpol
The functionalities offered by this application are extremely interesting for hunting down art thieves. This is how Interpol describes its ID-Art app:
"ID-Art uses state-of-the-art image recognition software to facilitate the identification of stolen cultural property, help reduce trafficking in it and increase the chances of recovering stolen objects."
The 3 main features of ID-Art
1 - Privileged access to the vast Interpol database
ID-Art provides access to a database of more than 50,000 stolen works of art from around the world.
The database is very well designed because it is possible to filter searches by country or with specific criteria (type of object, material, technique, title, description, artist, format...). It is even possible to search by photo. In fact, you take a photo of what you are looking for and the application suggests similar items.
In addition, you can save your searches or even consult your search history, a sophisticated system!
2 - Creating private catalogues
In the "My catalogue" section of the application, Interpol allows you to add your own art collection. You can fill in each of your works and its information. The data is saved locally, which means that Interpol will not have access to this valuable information.
In addition, it is possible to add several locations to your catalogue. This is useful if you have multiple places of residence, it allows you to keep everything together. Again, very useful!
According to Interpol, it is important to build up a virtual private collection because it meets an international standard called "Object ID". In the event of theft, this valuable data can be passed on to the relevant police services and this greatly increases your chances of recovering the stolen items.
3 - Report threatened cultural sites
Thanks to ID-Art, you can create a file for a threatened site or monument. Whether the site is historical, archaeological or underwater, you can specify its location, condition, detailed description and photos.
These records are essential for preserving heritage, and serve as evidence and references for the purposes of rebuilding the site if it has been destroyed or looted.
Do you like art, culture and heritage? Then this application is for you. For the moment, it exists in four languages: French, English, Spanish and Arabic. To download it, go to the store of your smartphone.
