Wim Hardyns is professor of Criminology at the Department of Criminology, Criminal Law and Social Law at Ghent University, Belgium. He is member and/or has a coordinating role in different renowned research groups and interdisciplinary consortia: (1) the Institute for International Research on Criminal Policy (IRCP), (2) Smart Solutions for Secure Societies (i4S), (3) Privacy, Information Exchange, Law Enforcement and Surveillance (PIXLES), (4) IDC Crime, Criminology & Criminal Policy (CRIME), (5) IDC Digital Innovation for both Individuals and Society (DELTA), and (6) IDC Working together for Mental Health (PSYNC).

His current interests are crime mapping/statistics, environmental criminology, crime prevention, new security technologies, big data, predictive policing, urban security, sports security, nightlife security, campus security, preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE), online risk behaviours, online violence.