Eastern Switzerland St. Gallen government doubts the expansion of online reports

The St. Gallen government has generally supported the possibility of filing online reports via the "Suisse ePolice" platform. However, according to the response to a motion, there are offenses that are not suitable for online reporting.

An expansion of the "Suisse ePolice" platform, which can already be used to report individual offenses such as theft online, would have to be coordinated with other police forces. This is what the St. Gallen government wrote in its response to a proposal by SP cantonal councillor Monika Simmler.

In a motion, Simmler had criticized the fact that criminal complaints were still only accepted in person at the police station as standard. In times of digitalization, this is no longer appropriate.

In its response, the government referred to a six-month pilot project that started in spring 2024. In the case of cybercrimes, such as goods that have been paid for but not delivered when purchased online, people can fill out an online questionnaire before going to the police station. The catalog forms the basis for the report. "In the vast majority of cases, an on-site interview is no longer necessary," the government continued.

The majority of reports are submitted physically

Experience since the start of the pilot project has been positive, the government continued. "These findings could also be used for other offense areas in the future."

The St. Gallen cantonal police confirmed back in May in response to an inquiry from the Keystone-SDA news agency that the majority of reports are filed physically and not online. One reason for this is that it is sometimes necessary to be interviewed by a police officer. In such cases, the report cannot be submitted online.