FBI National Data Exchange Program (NDEx)
Investment ID: 011-000003024
Overview
Program Title
FBI National Data Exchange Program (NDEx)
Description
The N-DEx System is an unclassified national strategic investigative information sharing system enabling criminal justice agencies to search, link, analyze, and share federal, state, local, and tribal records across jurisdictional boundaries.
Type of Program
Major IT Investments
Multi-Agency Category
Not Applicable
Associated Websites
https://www.fbi.gov/services/cjis/ndex
Investment Detail
The N-DEx System's creation was an answer to the 9-11 Commission, which called for better information sharing among federal, state, local, and tribal criminal justice agencies. Consistent feedback from the criminal justice (CJ) community suggests the N-DEx System provides a cost-effective mitigation to existing information sharing challenges. During the phased development of the N-DEx System, the N-DEx Program Office surveyed the CJ community to assess the anticipated benefits upon implementation; the respondents indicated the perceived market value to be approximately $625 million ($864 million in 2022, controlling for inflation). The investment in the N-DEx System, from concept to current operating capability totals approximately $609 million, a cost roughly 70% of today's estimated adjusted market value. This model also assumed that the N-DEx System would complement existing state, local, and regional information sharing capabilities.
While difficult to directly quantify the return on investment tied to the N-DEx System's stated mission of reducing crime and safeguarding the American people through strategic information sharing, agencies routinely benefit realized from the system use. In previous user assessments, more than half of respondents reported faster access to investigative information, and seven out of ten indicated improved quality of investigative information, due to the availability of the N-DEx System. In addition, the N-DEx Program Office receives success stories from users, which detail how the N-DEx System assisted in a wide range of investigative successes, including apprehension of human traffickers, sex offenders and absconders, and the prevention of criminal justice employment by individuals falsifying information on employment applications. The following 2021 N-DEx Success Story demonstrates the benefit of the N-DEx System.
N-DEx records assist investigators in locating a missing person. With a shortage of leads, a case involving a missing young person was turning cold. However, information was provided to an FBI intelligence analyst and a Safe Streets task force officer who shared it with the special victims unit of the police department that had opened the case. The source provided information regarding the potential disposal of a body, the first name of a suspect, and the name of an associate.
While difficult to directly quantify the return on investment tied to the N-DEx System's stated mission of reducing crime and safeguarding the American people through strategic information sharing, agencies routinely benefit realized from the system use. In previous user assessments, more than half of respondents reported faster access to investigative information, and seven out of ten indicated improved quality of investigative information, due to the availability of the N-DEx System. In addition, the N-DEx Program Office receives success stories from users, which detail how the N-DEx System assisted in a wide range of investigative successes, including apprehension of human traffickers, sex offenders and absconders, and the prevention of criminal justice employment by individuals falsifying information on employment applications. The following 2021 N-DEx Success Story demonstrates the benefit of the N-DEx System.
N-DEx records assist investigators in locating a missing person. With a shortage of leads, a case involving a missing young person was turning cold. However, information was provided to an FBI intelligence analyst and a Safe Streets task force officer who shared it with the special victims unit of the police department that had opened the case. The source provided information regarding the potential disposal of a body, the first name of a suspect, and the name of an associate.