Advanced Technology and Artificial Intelligence: Criminal Justice and Legal Challenges, Impacts, and Solutions

Dear Colleagues,

In an era where advanced technologies, artificial intelligence and digitally mediated environments are rapidly transforming society, the criminal justice system is experiencing profound structural, operational and legal shifts. This Special Issue, titled “Advanced Technology and Artificial Intelligence: Criminal Justice and Legal Challenges, Impacts, and Solutions,” seeks to provide a comprehensive examination of how emerging technologies are reshaping crime, law, justice processes and correctional practices worldwide.

The issue examines the evolving technological landscape influencing modern crime and justice. While cybercrime remains a central concern, including interpersonal online offenses, child exploitation, identity theft, hacking, fraud and digital financial crimes, the scope also extends to the transformation of criminal justice institutions themselves. We welcome contributions that analyze the implications of artificial intelligence systems, algorithmic decision tools, biometric technologies, immersive digital platforms, digital evidence infrastructures and automated decision-making processes.

At the global level, interconnected digital infrastructures, artificial intelligence-driven systems and cross-border data flows create new opportunities for crime while also enabling advanced investigative and enforcement capabilities. These developments raise complex jurisdictional, evidentiary and governance challenges that demand stronger international cooperation, harmonized legal standards and innovative technological responses.

At the national level, the issue examines how criminal justice systems are adapting to technological change across multiple domains. Topics include legal system impacts such as artificial intelligence-assisted adjudication, digital evidence admissibility, algorithmic risk assessments, privacy protections and due-process implications; law enforcement transformations involving predictive analytics, artificial intelligence-supported investigations, digital forensics, surveillance technologies, blockchain analysis and automated threat detection; and correctional innovations including electronic monitoring, artificial intelligence-driven risk management, virtual rehabilitation programs, data-informed supervision and technology-enabled reentry support.

A central focus of the issue is emerging crime patterns and technology-enabled harms, such as artificial intelligence-assisted fraud, synthetic media exploitation, automated scam infrastructures, platform-facilitated grooming and vulnerabilities within digital ecosystems. Understanding these evolving threats is essential for developing evidence-based prevention, intervention and enforcement strategies.

The issue also addresses broader societal implications, including impacts on civil liberties, procedural fairness, institutional legitimacy, workforce capabilities and public trust, with particular attention to victims, marginalized populations and digital inequality. Contributions examining legal and policy frameworks are encouraged to assess current regulations, identify governance gaps and propose reforms that ensure accountability, transparency and ethical technology use.

Finally, the issue highlights preventive strategies, technical innovations and interdisciplinary collaboration among public agencies, private-sector partners and researchers.

We invite submissions from scholars, practitioners and policymakers, including original research articles, theoretical analyses, empirical studies and policy-focused papers that advance understanding of how advanced technologies and artificial intelligence are transforming criminal justice systems at both national and global levels.

Prof. Dr. Kyung-Shick Choi
Dr. Insun Park
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Laws is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• artificial intelligence
• criminal justice technology
• cybercrime and digital offenses
• digital forensics and evidence
• algorithmic governance