Knife detectors are apparently a thing now (but are unreliable).

[AriesTheCam]

What if you carry a g10 push dagger through places with metal detectors and/or ?AI shape detectors?

I've never been stopped because of it.

 

[Guy McVer]

It sounds like a pretty standard metal detector system unless I am missing something. They can be adjusted for sensitivity.

Metal detectors simply can tell if certain substances pass by, but according to an article I read, these can sense the approximate shape of the object if it's a ferrous material. Like cylinders for gun barrels, and flat shapes for knives It's just that shape alone isn't a reliable indicator of the object being a weapon.

If it's Evolv, the company is super cagey about this for intellectual property reasons, but they've become really big in the Security Theater Industry, and their scanners are in use at a lot of big places like concert venues, stadiums, schools, and other high-throughput places where scanning has to be fast and run a lot of people through in a short amount of time.

It’s not a metal detector. It’s an AI scanner that I assume runs data through a system to scan for people that are likely to have a weapon or firearm on them. They probably mix in some random screening so people can’t figure out how to “beat it”. If I had to guess, it’s looking at facial expressions, clothing profiles (shapes in your waist and pockets). I went through okay but two 50-something year old women had their purses searched. Had a SAK on me at the time and forgot. My guess is it is that it’s use is limited, but it keeps people guessing.. so people that might be trying to beat metal detectors are kept on their toes (or discouraged) from entering.

It sounds like it's combining metal detection with some kind of imaging and deep learning AI visual recognition. The AI looks for certain types of shapes and throws up an alert when it finds one. It wouldn't be surprising if it was also combining this with AI interpretation of body language and facial expression, but that's speculative.

I'm not sure how this stupid thing is supposed to work, but it's clearly not reliable. The day two visit shows that the flat metal internals of my camera, like the aperture, are enough to set it off, as are things like cases for glasses. The enforcement is also very poor, as they found my slipjoint, but didn't press any further and thus missed the three other knives I was carrying . I don't mind admitting that because, as the guard stated, the knives don't violate any laws, just that particular location's policy. Good thing I wasn't a nutcase.

In terms of security, this sounds like a step backwards. Normally you'd just be required to empty your pockets of any metal objects until you can pass through without triggering the metal detector. It's simpler, costs less, and is obviously more effective for actual real world security.

This makes me very suspicious of the true motives for deploying such a system. It makes me think that the intent isn't to improve security screenings, but instead to use real world training to advance the technology itself towards some other goal which could have applications in other areas. Deep learning AI improves through constant training.

It's a bit disturbing.

 

[LunaticK3nnels]

Until they come with a g10 detector, with a little imagination, you can get a “knife” and a nice pair of knuckles into pretty much any NPE you can imagine.

 

[DocJD]

with a little imagination

Did you mean the AI ?

They're working on that !

It's a bit disturbing.

 

[LunaticK3nnels]

Did you mean the AI ?

They're working on that !

Did you mean the AI ?

They're working on that !

I can guarantee you’re right about that

 

[schluterc]

I don’t think there’s metal detection involved. I believe it’s a scanner- measuring and alerting based on the density and size of objects. The “AI” comes into play based on the size, shape and location of the object (s) found. Last week we went through a few of those in NYC. I left my knife (knives lol) at the hotel when I expected security. Always had a flashlight and Fellhoelter pen however. My wife got tagged once. I went first so I saw the monitor with her picture and there was a red long object in her left front pocket, this was flashing. She was checked and it was a hard shell sunglass case. As stated here earlier I also believe the parameters can be defined, obviously at a tourist attraction, sports game etc, you would be looking for firearms, large knives, bottles, etc. Small objects would cause tremendous backups. I believe we were asked to carry our phones in our hands as well. I’m guessing that seeing that object in a pocket would alert the system.