A federal agency is requesting information from a security company used by some metro Atlanta school districts about its marketing practices.
Atlanta Public Schools and the DeKalb County School District each have signed contracts with the company, Evolv Technologies, and use its systems in middle and high schools. Henry County’s school system is using Evolv’s technology at its stadiums for football games.
Evolv “uses advanced sensor technology and artificial intelligence to distinguish between weapons and everyday items,” according to a claim on the company’s website. However, the company has conceded the technology hasn’t detected some knives and other materials including lead, plastic and aluminum.
In a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing on Oct. 12, Evolv said the FTC “had requested information about certain aspects of its marketing practices and we are pleased to answer their questions, as well as educate them about our mission to make communities safer and more secure.”
Evolv went on to say it’s cooperating with the commission. The inquiry was reported earlier this month by some national news outlets.
The FTC declined to comment, saying its investigations aren’t public.
Alexandra Smith Ozerkis, vice president of corporate communications for Evolv Technology, said in a lengthy statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that its technology works.
“The Company stands behind its technology’s capabilities and performance track record, and is proud to partner with hundreds of security professionals to add a layer of advanced technology to their safety plan,” she said.
Atlanta and DeKalb school district officials said in statements that they were pleased thus far with Evolv. Atlanta Public Schools agreed last year on a one-year, $2.6 million contract to install it in its middle and high schools. The scanners were installed in January. DeKalb’s school system in March agreed to a four-year, $8 million contract with Evolv. The Henry school board approved the purchase of Evolv’s technology in August for $2.1 million.
It’s not hard to see why the company’s promise is appealing. Students walk through sleek, modern security scanners without removing anything from their backpacks or taking off clothing. The idea is to provide a high level of security without making schools look like prisons. The company’s website says its school security system, Evolv Express, is 10 times faster than metal detectors.
Those kinds of claims are problematic, says Nikita Ermolaev, a research engineer with the security watchdog publication IPVM.
“With metal detectors being usually tuned to find very small threats — pocket knives — it’s an unfair comparison because Evolv is targeting mostly firearms,” he said. “So ... it can be misleading to the public.”
IPVM has written extensively about Evolv’s claims and has accused the company of using deceptive marketing practices.
“Their slogan was ‘weapons-free zones,’ which is a very strong claim to make if you think about it,” Ermolaev said.
Evolv has posted an apology for the statement on the FAQ page of its website.
Michael Dorn is the executive director of Georgia-based nonprofit Safe Havens International, which consults with school districts on improving school safety. Safe Havens has worked with several metro Atlanta school districts and evaluated Evolv for some Florida public school districts two years ago. Dorn couldn’t comment on a possible federal probe, but said Evolv couldn’t provide necessary safety certifications and other documentation during the assessment.
“While we do believe the technology may eventually improve to do what the company has claimed it can do — and would love to see that — we unfortunately have to advise our clients not to use the system until and unless the company can provide reliable evidence that it does what they claim it does, that it is safe to use for screening people and that there is ample evidence of effectiveness to withstand a federal civil action alleging a violation of the 4th Amendment (unreasonable searches and seizures),” he said.
Staff writer Leon Stafford contributed to this article.
No worries so far
Three metro Atlanta school districts that have contracts with Evolv to use the company’s technology have reported no major concerns.
DeKalb schools didn’t comment on Evolv’s marketing practices, but said the decision to choose the company was well-researched and considered. In March, the school board approved a plan to place the “Evolv Express” weapons detection systems in DeKalb’s middle and high schools.
APS released the following statement:
“Atlanta Public Schools has been pleased with the addition of the Evolv weapon detection systems to our comprehensive safety and security strategy. While no system is 100 percent foolproof, the installation of the Evolv systems on our middle and high school campuses and in our athletic facilities has served as an aid and a deterrent in our safety protocols.”
Henry County Schools uses Evolv in sports stadiums, but not school buildings. A spokesperson issued the following:
“Henry County Schools began implementing Evolv weapons detection systems on Oct. 6 (2023) at high school stadiums as an extra layer of security at our largest attended events, alongside clear bag guidelines, increased SRO (school resource officer) presence, and limiting admission to the first three-quarters of football games. Since then, we have received positive feedback from our community and school administration regarding the implementation of this additional security layer. HCS has a four-year contract for the use of Evolv.”
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