New border technology analyzes behavior to predict threats
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We've all dealt with body scanners at airports -- the machines that scan us to make sure we aren't carrying any weapons.
But what about a machine that can read your body language, analyze your behavior, your emotions, predict your intent?
It's new technology that's being tested on the Arizona-Mexico border right now. We got a rare sneak peek of the machine and how it works.
Questions include: "Are you applying to program at request of another person?"
"Do you live at the address you listed at your application?"
"Have you ever used any other names?"
"Did you accurately list all your employers for the past five years?"
The questions are very basic. The responses yes or no.
"Have you ever carried a package across border without knowing what was inside of the package?"
But it's less about what you say to this virtual agent, and more about how you say it.
"How do people move when they're upset, how do they move when they're trusting someone, how do they speak," says Aaron Elkins, postdoctoral researcher at Borders.
It's called an "Automated Virtual Agent for Truth Assessments in Real Time," or more simply put, it's an avatar.
The team that helped create it is based at the University of Arizona and was established by the Department of Homeland Security.
The machine is the size of an ATM. The virtual agent blinks and mimics human movements. It speaks both English and Spanish.
It's equipped with a microphone that analyzes the pitch of your voice, your inflection -- clues that help indicate whether or not you're telling the truth. The data is then fed into a computer program.
"So for question three it said that person is uncertain... its just insight into the way they responded."
It's been compared to a lie detector test, but the avatar's creators shy away from that comparison, saying there's one key difference.
"It is looking at info that happened in the past like a background check, whereas this system is trying to get at where are you now and where are you going."
The machine is still in the testing stages at the Arizona-Mexico border. In the near future, it'll help cut down on long lines by assisting Border Patrol agents screening folks for the Trusted Traveler Program.
But farther down the road, they're predicting the avatars will do a lot more -- like even intercept terrorists.
"We want them to come through, it's very important to make it realistic."
That enhanced technology is already in the works. First they ask volunteers to assemble a fake bomb just like this.
"After they put it together they put it in a box, a bag and they're told to put it in a secure portion of the building," says Nathan Twyman, postdoctoral researcher at Borders.
They're then asked to step in front of this machine.
"You want it to be a natural interaction."
The avatar asks a series of questions, but unlike the machine already in use, this one also measures body language. A 3-D camera tracks body movement. It will eventually be able to measure body temperature.
"One of things we found in the past is people in certain circumstances will freeze up like fight or flight response, they feel like they're being threatened," says Twyman.
The team uses tests like this to find common patterns in deceptive behavior, but one thing they want to make clear is these machines aren't meant to replace humans. They're meant to assist them.
"We're not in any hurry to deploy this and make bold claims that it can find terrorists at this stage. We've really focused in on making sure we can automate interviews and interpret behaviors that just aren't consistent with your normal behavior."
Farther down the road the team expects to see the machines used at airports, at major sporting events, and even in job interviews.
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