Australian scientists working on "suspicious behavior" monitoring

We've all heard of facial recognition software, that detects people against an image databse of known suspects, but what about software that checks against behavioral warning signs? Strange as it sounds, certain behaviors or body language can tip off a watchful eye, be it algorithm or a trained human. Australian scientists are working on automating this procress in software to track "inappropriate behavior" in public places, interpret that how you will. This, of course, is normally the work of trained officers, like the Nevada Highway Patrol officer who earlier this week unknowingly pulled over polygamist Warren Jeffs. The fugitive was then apprehended when the officer noticed Jeffs' carotid artery pulsating abnormally. Maybe a new Robocop isn't as far off as we might think, but we're all going to need some new gear as our pulsing carotid artery's already telling us the tin foil hats we've come to rely so heavily upon just ain't gonna cut it.

[Via TechDirt]

[Tek @ Sep 2nd 2006 3:00AM]

Is anyone else getting "Brave New World" from this? These are perilous times, these are!

[Tom W @ Sep 2nd 2006 3:11AM]

Make sure your tin foil hat is state of the art.

See here:

http://zapatopi.net/afdb/

[Ransom @ Sep 2nd 2006 3:38AM]

I for one welcome our new algorithm overlords. =)

[Steven Paul @ Sep 2nd 2006 4:30AM]

All this time spent pining for "algorythmic" overlords and they saddle us with algorithmic overlords.

[Tim @ Sep 2nd 2006 4:39AM]

They actually already do this kind of thing here monitoring the way people behave on train platforms, kinda like an advanced warning system for jumpers.

[Nikolai @ Sep 2nd 2006 4:58AM]

@Tek

No, I'm reading "Bladerunner: Director's Cut" here.

[matchmaking services @ Sep 2nd 2006 5:55AM]

All the more reason to downsize government.

But still, they are lightyears away from any type of robocop, atleast in the US. Maybe not so much in Japan. They got some pretty good androids there.

[George Landon @ Sep 2nd 2006 9:17AM]

Other research groups have already gotten impressive results for "suspicious behavior" detection.

Here is an example: http://www.wisdom.weizmann.ac.il/~vision/Irregularities.html

[otakucode @ Sep 2nd 2006 9:56AM]

You think this is creepy? This system tries to read strangers and will inevitably have a pretty high rate of false positives and false negatives. What's much more creepy is what employers can do. Your routine can be mapped. What door you come in in the morning, what time you show up, what time you log into your terminal/swipe your security badge to enter your area, etc. A couple weeks of monitoring that and statistical distributions can be worked up that encompass the contraints of your daily pattern. Deviation from that pattern is almost inevitable if there is a significant change in your mental state or behavior.

And no, that's not just some theory I came up with. It's being used by at least one federal intelligence agency in the US.

Just remember, government is a raving, slathering beast. It will tear its way through your freedoms with ravenous hunger if it is not chained and fought back.

[Raider @ Sep 2nd 2006 11:01AM]

I don't see it lasting long if it is created. I'm sure there will be someone with some kind of handicap which will be seen as "suspicious behavior". There will be a law suit of some kind and who knows.

Even so, there would have to be sample behaviors that would have to be implemented into the program. There is a possible stereotypical behavior that could be included. Which I'm sure some people would cry racism. Seems extreme, but people love to cry racism on every chance they get.

[ipodrulz @ Sep 2nd 2006 11:18AM]

No I think this is along the lines of 1984, cameras in your house that senses smiling, or anything else "wierd".

[Guruboy @ Sep 2nd 2006 11:42AM]

What is an Austrailian scientist?

[Robotron @ Sep 2nd 2006 11:46AM]

Saw this picture once on a website with Bin Laden and the caption "I'm still free. What about you?"
It's so true who is winning the war as the worlds governments work harder and harder to remove what freedoms we have.
Now a scowl can make you a bad guy.

My mother in law was delayed at a US airport for 10 hours last year because of the steel braces on her legs.
Here's a woman confined to a wheel chair because of a stroke and they made her the example as the disassembled her wheelchair and removed her braces to inspect everything.
And NO she isn't arab...she's dutch. blond and tall.

So make all the "tin foil" hat jokes you want to belittle peoples concerns, but the world governments seem to be on a roll and it is our future and our childrens that is corroding here.

[willdao @ Sep 2nd 2006 12:30PM]

I was gonna maybe say:

"Nicely, delightfully, snide, Cyrus! A kudos!"

But I think I'm just gonna haveta open up that kudos to everyone!

So:

Nicely, delightfully, snide, everyone!



(From the "Willopeodia":

"Snideness: The last refuge, after mere satire, gross cynicism, utter despair, of the powerless and truly desperate, and/or deeply fearful...Signals a devil-may-care nonchalance that is transparently false. ")


Will

[willdao @ Sep 2nd 2006 12:33PM]

But, hey, snideness--much as pissing--is just flat-out, unequivocal, universal fun! (Ahem...'Specially when ya REALLY GOTTA, as there's no practicable alternative...)

[Rick Burns @ Sep 2nd 2006 3:41PM]

Where does one find "tin foil" any more? Wake up Tom W..., Do you mean Aluminum foil?

[Oddmanout @ Sep 3rd 2006 4:54AM]

I don't know how well this can work...particularly if they plan to use this system in airports. In airports you are going to encounter so many ethnicities of people that I doubt you could compile an effective baseline of 'Normal' behaviour to measure all those people against.

Remember that Simpsons episode where Lisa ended up in Springfields 'Little Russia', she asked for directions and the guy she asked seemed to respond with an explosive rant ? Of course as you saw in that episode , that was simply how the guy talked, even when he was happy. Some cultures involve a lot of fast and or wide hand gestures in normal conversation...others find that threatening (a prelude to attack). How can you effectively gauge all those and the millions of other idosyncracies that people have, effectively, in real time ?

With current technology...I don't think you can...


Even humans can't conclusively deduce what's on somebody's mind from their behaviour (though I know, there are warning signs of impending anti-social behavior of many types and people can be trained to watch for that), and computers don't yet have near the cognitive power of a human brain.

And consider...


If someone wants to take out a plane in flight...they will almost certainly be killed themselves. A resignation to death can bring on an incredibly pervasive sense of calm and peace. So unless this system is going to be designed to take interest in both people who behave erraticly and those who are too chilled out I think between the false positives and false negatives combined will render this system fairly useless...

The sad thing is, that won't stop the gov from using a system like this (I know this particular device is being developed in australia, but I'm sure the US is working on one like it). It really is sad, because one of the things that's great about America is your "right" to behave in an excentric fashion if you so choose (and aren't actively hurting someone else). Dress in dark clothes, a long coat in summer, have a nervous tick, talk to yourself (in subdued tones), 15 piercings in your face and 12 tattoos, etc. etc..

But what good is having a right if you are penalized for exercising it ?

[cecilia @ Sep 3rd 2006 7:15PM]

ok, whst are they deciding is "inappropriate behavior"????

I'm currently recovering from an injury and I can assure you all that there are times when I know my face (and sometimes entire body) have been contorted in pain.

Am I to expect the "appropriate behavior" police to jump out of the bushes, knock my crutches aside and asault me because I looked kinda funny there for a moment???

[renae the GPS expert @ Sep 4th 2006 6:06AM]

sounds a lot like 'big brother' is getting closer each day. hopefully they are working on improving our privacy as well.