Liars Beware: Covert facial lie detector can spot falsehoods in real time

Move over, polygraph — here comes the future of lie detectors. A new system that can spot lies in real time through subtle changes in facial expression and temperature is slated for testing at an airport in Britain. The technology, created by a team of researchers from the Universities of Bradford and Aberystwyth, was unveiled at the British Science Festival in Bradford today.

The system spies on people through a camera, using powerful software that detects the changes in emotions on a person's face. The system bases its results on studies that associate lying to things like sudden eye movements, lip biting, heavy breathing, swallowing, and rapid blinking. Thermal imaging technology then determines rise in temperature brought about by an increase in blood flow, which is another telltale sign of lying. Professor Hassan Ugail (the head of the research) says, "When someone is making something up on the spot, brain activity usually changes and you can detect this through the thermal camera."


The system is a work in progress, and tests conducted thus far have been limited. A total of 30 to 40 volunteers underwent testing, and the system predicted instances of lying correctly two out of three times. The researchers aim to achieve 90% accuracy upon completion, similar to the polygraph's performance, as something of this nature cannot achieve 100% accuracy.

An undisclosed U.K. airport will serve as the first test site for the system later this year to assist in authorities' profiling techniques. Exact details of the airport testing are still unknown, but Professor Ugail hypothesizes that passengers could be asked routine questions, and the results could be sent to the countries of destination.

While the system is originally created for security purposes, it has a few other potential applications. In the medical field, it could be used for the early detection of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Marketing companies, on the other hand, can assess how products are doing based on consumers' expressions.

But just as it has good potential applications, it also has unscrupulous ones due to its non-invasive and unobtrusive nature. Imagine it falling into the hands of an extremely jealous partner or protective parents. Still, having possible unethical applications goes for numerous other technologies. This lie detector system isn't any different, and we could only hope that people use it for good.

[Image credit: CEBImagery.com]

[via CNN, BBC, News.com.au, Financial Times]

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