AI scanners used in hundreds of US schools miss knives

A security firm that sells AI weapon scanners to schools faces new questions about its technology after a student was attacked with a knife that the $3.7 million system failed to detect.

On Halloween last year, student Ini Lel Tu was walking down a school hallway in Utica, New York when another student walked up behind him and stabbed him with a knife.

The victim’s lawyer told the BBC exclusively that the 18-year-old suffered multiple stab wounds to his head, neck, face, shoulder, back and hand.

The knife used in the attack was taken to Proctor High School, despite a $3.7 million weapon detection system being installed by a company called Evolve Technology.

Evolv Technology is a security company that wants to replace traditional metal detectors with AI weapon scanners.

Rather than simply detecting metals, Evolv says its scanners “combine powerful sensor technology with proven artificial intelligence” to detect weapons.

Trigger alerts when the system detects hidden weapons such as knives, bombs, and guns.

The company claims its systems are highly accurate, and has previously boasted that its scanners will help create “weapon-free zones.”

The company’s CEO, Peter George, also said the company’s system “has the signature of every weapon in the world.”

Previous press releases list the weapons the system can detect (firearms, explosives, knives, etc.).

The system is used in major stadiums across the US and Manchester Arena in the UK. Testers said Evolv should notify potential customers.

Nonetheless, the company is making inroads into schools and claims it is now installed in hundreds of schools across the country.

In March 2022, the Utica School Board purchased Evolv weapons scanning systems for 13 schools. Installed during summer vacation.

On October 31, CCTV caught the perpetrators of the attack on Eni Lel Tu entering Proctor High School and passing through Evolve’s weapons scanners, according to one of the school’s officials who saw the security footage.

“We all asked the same question when we saw that terrifying video: How did the students bring knives into school?” said Brian Nolan, superintendent of Utica School.

The knife used in the stabbing was over 9 inches (22.8 cm) long.

The attack sparked an internal investigation by the Utica school district.

“Investigations have shown that the Evolv weapon detection system… was not designed to detect knives,” Nolan said.

Scanners have been removed from Proctor High School and replaced with 10 metal detectors. However, scanners are still operational in the district’s remaining 12 schools. Nolan said the school district cannot afford to abandon Evolv’s system in the remaining schools.

Nolan said three knives had been found by students at other schools in the district where the Evolv system remained operational since the attack.

One of the knives was 7 inches long. Another was a curved blade with a finger hole. Another was a pocket knife. Nolan said they were all found because they were reported to staff, not because weapons scanners detected them.

“Children [who had the knives] They all said they went through a weapons detection system, but we asked them about it … really, really no knives were found,” he said.

After the stabbing, the wording on Evolv’s website changed.

Until October last year, Evolv’s homepage boasted a headline boasting a “weapon-free zone.” The company has since removed the wording and changed the text to “Safe Zone.” Now it has changed again and now says “Safer Zones”.

Evolv claims their system uses cutting-edge AI technology to locate weapons. However, critics of the system say they don’t know enough about how the system works or how effective the technology is at finding different types of weapons. ing.

The BBC sent Evolv a detailed right-to-back, revealing what happened at Utica’s school and the school’s decision to stop using the system.

Also, what did Evolv tell the school about what its system could and could not detect, and how independent testing found that its own system could not reliably detect large knives? They also asked whether they had communicated to the public and whether they thought their system was suitable for use in schools. Mr. Evolve did not answer questions.

Connor Healy of IPVM, a firm that analyzes security devices, said Evolve overstated the system’s effectiveness.

“There are widespread cases of schools buying new technology based on bold marketing claims only to find that the technology has hidden flaws, often costing them millions of dollars. Evolv is one of the worst criminals, school officials are not technical experts in weapons detection, and companies like Evolv profit from their ignorance.”

Quick marketing claims are unacceptable when selling security products used to protect young people, he added.

Evolv did not give the BBC a comment, but directed it to CEO Peter George’s blog post in which it defended a lack of detail on how much the company said about how the technology works.

“Marketing weapons detection security requires a delicate balance between educating stakeholders on the new technology and not providing information that the bad guys can use to do harm,” he said. said.

“As such, our public marketing materials are intentionally non-specific, but communicate all aspects of the Evolv Express system, including limitations and capabilities, to our customers, partners, and prospective customers’ trusted security professionals,” the blog post said. is written.

The BBC has contacted seven other school districts using Evolv weapons scanners. Five did not respond. Two said they did not want to comment.