DHS · DHS-2380 · record R1886

Passive Body Scanner

Department of Homeland Security · CBP

Overview

Development stage: DeployedSource: c) Deployed – The use case is being actively authorized or utilized to support the functions or mission of an agency.
High-impact designation: High-impactSource: a) High-impact
Impact justification: Not reported
Start date: 2023-09-29 (day precision)Source: 2023-09-29T00:00:00
Withheld from public reporting: Not reported

Mission

Topic area: Law Enforcement
Operational functions: No function tag matched Derived by keyword rules; see methodology

Problem the AI is intended to solve

Identify anomalies in body heat, assisting CBP officers to detect concealed weapons and contraband, allowing for efficient processing of travelers

Expected benefits

PBS is intended to enhance situational awareness in pedestrian traveler processing to aid CBP officers in observing potentially dangerous objects or contraband in a timely manner and pursuant to CBP’s border search authority.

System outputs

This algorithm highlights areas on a person where potential objects may be blocking the subject's expected body heat and displays these areas on live video image, monitored by a CBP officer. The highlighted areas may show the locations of carried objects, which could be potential weapons or contraband.

Technology

AI classification: Computer visionSource: Computer Vision: AI that processes and interprets visual data (e.g., images and videos).
System name(s): Passive Body Scanner
Custom-developed code: Yes
Public source code: Not reported

Sourcing

How it was built: Contract and in-houseSource: c) Developed with both contracting and in-house resources
Vendor (as reported): ThruVision TAC 16
Vendors (standardized): None on the standard list

A vendor is the supplier named by the agency. It does not identify the underlying model or AI technology.

Data and privacy

Involves PII: No
Privacy Impact Assessment: www.dhs.gov ↗
Authorization to Operate: Yes
Demographic features: Not reported
Training and evaluation data: All data used in training, validation, test and evaluation of the AI is Thruvision proprietary – no data from any external sources (including the Agency) is used. Approximately 25,000 images have been used for training the DynamicDETECT model. These training images were extracted from staged screening events recorded with Thruvision cameras using various actors, concealment items, item locations and clothing.
Federal Data Catalog: Not reported

Governance

8 of 8 minimum-practice questions answered. A blank answer means the agency reported nothing; it does not mean the practice is absent.

Pre-deployment testingReported in placeSource: a) Yes

AI impact assessmentReported in progressSource: b) In-progress

Independent reviewReported in progressSource: d) In-progress

Ongoing monitoringReported in progressSource: b) Development of monitoring protocols is in-progress

Operator trainingReported in progressSource: b) Establishment of sufficient and periodic training is in-progress

Fail-safeReported in progressSource: c) In-progress

Appeal processNot applicableSource: b) Not applicable

User and public consultationOther or ambiguous answerSource: d) Other

Potential impacts and how they were identified

Negligible impacts to traveler safety - PBS uses passive means (thermal imaging, no radiation emitted) to “look’ for contraband or weapons on a traveler. If the PBS operator sees a weapon (either with or without the PBS), they will seek supervisor approval to conduct a pat down and initiate a secondary referral. If they see contraband, they may direct the traveler to stop and notify a supervisor, who will decide if the image or other factors meet the threshold to conduct a pat down.