In an increasingly interconnected world, the ability for organisations to share data across agency boundaries is no longer desirable – it is essential.
Multi-agency data-sharing (MADS) tackles cross-border disjunctions, enables early intervention and prevention, and improves systemic breaches in communication and knowledge. Despite the clear benefits, MADS remains controversial and fragmented. Concerns over privacy, security, and data handling stand in the way of a successful standardised system that would greatly diminish the problems we currently face.
How can policing build a system that enables secure real-time data sharing across legacy systems?
No singular Police Authority and Law Enforcement Agency holds all the information needed to comprehend and resolve complex crimes. Improved connectivity allows access to relevant information, provides a ‘bigger picture’, and helps officers make more informed decisions. Where a police force may hold data on a suspect’s device, without interconnectivity, ‘cross-referenced data from local records, incident reports and intelligence logs from an RMS’ creates a breach of valuable information.
NDIES have created a framework to ensure the legality, scope, responsibility, and auditability of data-sharing are integral and standardised across all agencies, diminishing confusion and lack of accountability. Dedicated cloud platforms harness complex, secure data centres, built on rigid precepts, to ensure the integrity and security of the data being held and shared within them.
So, what works?
To achieve successful MADS that is effective and secure, these principles are key:
- Clear purpose and scope
- Strong governance frameworks
- Legal confidence
- Interoperability
- Joint controllership over who and what data is shared
- Culture of Trust
MADS – A success story and a lesson learnt.
When utilised correctly, data sharing can, and has, resulted in successful high-level operations that counteract crime:
“EU’s Prüm data-sharing framework” ‘configures number plate recognition within seconds, allowing cross-border vehicle identification matches to be instantly and easily obtained, whilst also ‘flagging stolen vehicles and vehicle keeper details’. This allows better understanding of ‘smuggling supply chains’ and ‘criminal networks’ that once went unidentified across the border.
Where data-sharing hasn’t been used in accordance with frameworks, the consequences demand new ways of working:
Breaches in communication between police, ambulance and fire services at the 2017 Manchester Attack resulted in forces being sent to the wrong locations, enforcing the wrong procedures and operations, failure to correctly identify patients, and failure to flag the perpetrator as a threat (after previous interest).
What can policing do to ensure data integrity and auditability across multiple agencies?
Standardisation plays a key role in data integrity; when all agencies use consistent formats, data-entry practices and abide by the same regulations, the risk of error is greatly reduced.
Audit chains re-enforce accountability; ‘having multi-agency data-controllership, clearly defined in frameworks’ such as the DPIA’s (data protection Impact Assessments), and allocated roles and responsibilities across each partnering police authority and law enforcement agency, mitigates concerns over data misuse and encourages shared knowledge of which people are responsible for accessing and modifying data. Customer-chains also reduce duplicate records through detection and controllership, as those who have access to add records can view what’s already there.
MFA, role-based permissions and ‘end-to-end encryption’ ensure that shared data remains reliable and is accessible only to the responsible persons/groups.
A clear approach to secure data-sharing:
- 1. Follow an established legal framework.
- 2. Invest in Secure, Extensible, and Sovereign Managed Infrastructure as the foundation.
- 3. Establish Interoperable services and data exchange frameworks.
- 4. Empower staff (train them on decision-making within data sharing and ensure roles and governance are designated.
- 5. Engage the public (Be transparent on what and why their data is being used and how it is shared and secured.)
- 6. Evaluate and continue to evolve (measure the impact, review the process).
How can Nine23 support you to achieve MADS?
One of the greatest challenges in implementing meaningful change is knowing where to begin. Establishing a reliable framework for data sharing requires navigating complex regulatory requirements, adhering to ethical and legal obligations, and selecting secure, resilient systems to manage and protect sensitive information. The process can often be overwhelming, resource-intensive, and time-consuming.
Nine23’s FLEX Pathway offers a flexible managed service for connectivity across multiple assured networks, hybrid cloud and zero trust internet services to provide the infrastructure layer that underpins interoperability. However, the challenge in sustaining successful interoperability requires foundational work before technology solutions are considered.
PIRI has been developed to simplify that journey. Our roadmap provides a foundational assessment of a force’s readiness for interoperable and connected data and outlines the practical steps agencies need to take to build the right foundations. It offers a structured approach to assessing, selecting, and investing in secure, scalable infrastructure that supports compliant and effective data sharing.
Designed specifically for Policing Authorities and Law Enforcement agencies, this roadmap provides a step-by-step framework to build confidence in the legal, ethical, and operational aspects of data sharing. Most importantly, it provides access to experienced subject matter experts who can advise, demonstrate, and support implementation, ensuring organisations have a trusted partner to guide transformation from strategy through to delivery.
Ultimately, secure and effective data-sharing is dependent on controlled accessibility and establishing robust, comprehensive policies and frameworks – shaped by ethical law, and followed by everyone. True collaboration and shared responsibility build a culture of trust across legacy groups and the public and improve policing outcomes.
References
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National Police Chief’s Council. (2026, January 29). Bridging the gap between force data. NPCC: Digital, Data and Technology. https://news.npcc.police.uk/releases/bridging-the-gap-between-force-data-to-ensure-policing-can-better-join-the-dots
National Police Chief’s Council. (2020). National Policing Digital Strategy 2020-2030. London: NPCC. Available at: https://pds.police.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/National-Policing-Digital-Strategy-2020-2030.pdf
Science and Technology in Policing. (N/A). Connecting Data to Protect The Public: A National Approach To Insight-Led Policing. Science and Technology in Policing. Available at: https://science.police.uk/site/assets/files/8182/ndies_website_case_study.pdf
Tonks, D., Gilmour, S, G. (2025). Breaking down barriers: Implementing effective multi-agency data sharing. Capita. Available at: https://content.capita.com/l/824863/2025-09-03/3rtdvy/824863/1756911875Um8z6o9j/Capita___MADS_Whitepaper.pdf?utm_source=whitepaper&utm_medium=Digital