The police celebrate with a jubilation that they have made progress in terms of digitization and that all Hessian officials should receive their own service smartphone by the end of next year.
But the first thought that comes to mind when you hear about it is: Why only now?
Why did it take so long before patrolmen were finally sent out onto the street with a mobile phone and suitable apps to simplify their work instead of pens, notes and radios?
It has often been said and written that the German administration is lagging behind when it comes to digitization.
On the other hand, it is good that something is being done - late, but with commitment - in the case of the Hessian police even with their own IT laboratory in Frankfurt's Westhafen.
But in their euphoria, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Digital shouldn't overturn each other.
Because there is still a lot to be done, even in the face of criminals who are themselves becoming more and more skilled in handling digital aids that communicate via crypto cell phones and can still conduct their illegal business in protected areas of the darknet, often all too unobserved.
The race to catch up against the digitally savvy criminals is far from over.
"Milestone" or "A matter of course"?
The police union reacts to the news that Hesse’s police officers are being supplied with smartphones and apps, then much more cautiously than Peter Beuth, the state’s interior minister. While Beuth speaks of a “milestone”, the trade unionists call the initiative a “matter of course”, which is now being exaggerated. For far too long, they complain, the plans for it have been in the drawer. That may be true, but here too, it's better to be late than never.
The initiative gives hope above all in one point: The new smartphones are intended to prevent police officers from being able to query data unnoticed in their offices. Only those who identify themselves by fingerprint or face recognition can access sensitive items. Every query is documented and can be clearly assigned to the policeman who made it. The shock that data was queried from Hessian police computers, which appeared in threatening letters to a lawyer who campaigns for NSU victim families, is deep. More digitization also promises more transparency. And now that's really good news.