this post was submitted on 23 Oct 2025
149 points (100.0% liked)

news

24577 readers
499 users here now

Welcome to c/news! We aim to foster a book-club type environment for discussion and critical analysis of the news. Our policy objectives are:

We ask community members to appreciate the uncertainty inherent in critical analysis of current events, the need to constantly learn, and take part in the community with humility. None of us are the One True Leftist, not even you, the reader.

Newcomm and Newsmega Rules:

The Hexbear Code of Conduct and Terms of Service apply here.

  1. Link titles: Please use informative link titles. Overly editorialized titles, particularly if they link to opinion pieces, may get your post removed.

  2. Content warnings: Posts on the newscomm and top-level replies on the newsmega should use content warnings appropriately. Please be thoughtful about wording and triggers when describing awful things in post titles.

  3. Fake news: No fake news posts ever, including April 1st. Deliberate fake news posting is a bannable offense. If you mistakenly post fake news the mod team may ask you to delete/modify the post or we may delete it ourselves.

  4. Link sources: All posts must include a link to their source. Screenshots are fine IF you include the link in the post body. If you are citing a Twitter post as news, please include the Xcancel.com (or another Nitter instance) or at least strip out identifier information from the twitter link. There is also a Firefox extension that can redirect Twitter links to a Nitter instance, such as Libredirect or archive them as you would any other reactionary source.

  5. Archive sites: We highly encourage use of non-paywalled archive sites (i.e. archive.is, web.archive.org, ghostarchive.org) so that links are widely accessible to the community and so that reactionary sources don’t derive data/ad revenue from Hexbear users. If you see a link without an archive link, please archive it yourself and add it to the thread, ask the OP to fix it, or report to mods. Including text of articles in threads is welcome.

  6. Low effort material: Avoid memes/jokes/shitposts in newscomm posts and top-level replies to the newsmega. This kind of content is OK in post replies and in newsmega sub-threads. We encourage the community to balance their contribution of low effort material with effort posts, links to real news/analysis, and meaningful engagement with material posted in the community.

  7. American politics: Discussion and effort posts on the (potential) material impacts of American electoral politics is welcome, but the never-ending circus of American Politics© Brought to You by Mountain Dew™ is not welcome. This refers to polling, pundit reactions, electoral horse races, rumors of who might run, etc.

  8. Electoralism: Please try to avoid struggle sessions about the value of voting/taking part in the electoral system in the West. c/electoralism is right over there.

  9. AI Slop: Don't post AI generated content. Posts about AI race/chip wars/data centers are fine.

founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
 

“It was like eight cop cars that came pulling up for us,” Allen told WBAL-TV 11 News. “They started walking toward me with guns, talking about ‘Get on the ground,’ and I was like, ‘What?’”

“They made me get on my knees, put my hands behind my back, and cuff me. Then they searched me and found nothing,” he said.

Allen was handcuffed at gunpoint. Police later showed him the AI-captured image that triggered the alert. The crumpled Doritos bag in his pocket had been mistaken for a gun.

“It was mainly like, am I gonna die? Are they going to kill me? “They showed me the picture, said that looks like a gun, I said, ‘no, it’s chips.’”

The AI system behind the incident is part of Omnilert’s gun detection technology, introduced in Baltimore County Public Schools last year. It scans existing surveillance footage and alerts police in real time when it detects what it believes to be a weapon.

Omnilert later admitted the incident was a “false positive” but claimed the system “functioned as intended,” saying its purpose is to “prioritize safety and awareness through rapid human verification.”

top 40 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] Owl@hexbear.net 82 points 3 months ago (1 children)
[–] TankieTanuki@hexbear.net 38 points 3 months ago (1 children)

How can a journalist just write that without pushing back at all?

[–] KhanCipher@hexbear.net 12 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Because in that field, doing that is pretty much committing career suicide, especially if you do it too early in your career.

Which considering it was one of the local news stations that covered it, I'd bet you the journalist was either thinking nothing at all, or was telling themselves to not pushback on it because they don't have enough connections to eat the shit that'll get served to them if they do.

[–] Antiwork@hexbear.net 69 points 3 months ago (2 children)

We will end crime in the next 6 months using this technology btw

[–] plinky@hexbear.net 38 points 3 months ago

can't have crime if you jail everyone and jail crimes get only internal hearings think-about-it

[–] SacredExcrement@hexbear.net 34 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Can't be any criminals on the streets if everyone is in prison

[–] peeonyou@hexbear.net 23 points 3 months ago

or shot to death

[–] chgxvjh@hexbear.net 68 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Systems like this have been killing people overseas for years. Now shit is coming home to the imperial core.

[–] stink@lemmygrad.ml 58 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)
IF melaninIdentifier >= 0.5 AND itemInPocket == True:
    notifyAuthorities()

Where's my billions?

[–] chgxvjh@hexbear.net 28 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Suck up to some small town sheriffs and you have a deal.

[–] Philosoraptor@hexbear.net 57 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

You'll never guess what the student looked like. Just a coincidence, I'm sure. us-foreign-policy artificial-intelligence

[–] Azarova@hexbear.net 56 points 3 months ago (2 children)

claimed the system “functioned as intended,” saying its purpose is to “prioritize safety and awareness through rapid human verification.”

Prioritizing public safety by sending a swarm of trigger happy hogs with guns drawn at a random kid. Very cool future we've found ourselves in! agony-yehaw

[–] Nakoichi@hexbear.net 32 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Minority Report but literal.

[–] Maturin@hexbear.net 21 points 3 months ago

If this is the intended function, they should not be using it

[–] dragongloss@hexbear.net 48 points 3 months ago

AI version of George Zimmerman. This was almost a Trayvon Martin incident with the bag of skittles and can of Arizona Tea. Crazy. Absolutely fucked up. I hate AI.

[–] hexthismess@hexbear.net 44 points 3 months ago

"Functioned as intended."

So the purpose if the system is to terrorize children, with the not so small chance that the pigs will shoot the kids, all based on hallucinations from an inscrutable program.

[–] ObamaSama@hexbear.net 41 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

I thought this had to be a bit but clicked through the sources and it seems it’s actually real? Can’t believe the world has already gotten to the point where people get swatted by hallucinating AI. The oppressive cyberpunk surveillance state is here and boy is it dogshit

[–] Midnight_Pearl@hexbear.net 40 points 3 months ago

bad country (china, nk, cuba, etc. take your pick) is a surveillance state, unlike the land of the free where AI cameras will sick armed maniacs on you for eating a bag of chips

[–] 9to5@hexbear.net 38 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Me who just stored 12 bags of doritoes in the kitchen... no-no-no-wait-wait-wait

[–] KuroXppi@hexbear.net 6 points 3 months ago

This is a stick up I've got a bag of dotitos give me all your guns

[–] Awoo@hexbear.net 31 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Doritos will use this in an ad.

[–] TankieTanuki@hexbear.net 35 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Unfortunately, "dangerously cheesy" is already trademarked by Cheetos

[–] Awoo@hexbear.net 30 points 3 months ago

Doritos: They bring the heat!

[–] Belly_Beanis@hexbear.net 24 points 3 months ago

holy fuck lmaooooooooooooooooooooo homelander-alright

[–] 30_to_50_Feral_PAWGs@hexbear.net 31 points 3 months ago (1 children)

We have officially entered the Cool Ranch Zone

[–] Nakoichi@hexbear.net 18 points 3 months ago

God dammit that's a good one

[–] Alaskaball@hexbear.net 31 points 3 months ago

I guess there's not enough school shootings from organic murderers so they're industrializing it with cops going on murder sprees because their tickle-me-elmo-bot chip implant mistake school text books as IEDs

[–] SorosFootSoldier@hexbear.net 28 points 3 months ago

There's mass shooters right now uploading their manifesto to youtube and are talking to undercover feds but no, let's do all this instead.

[–] lib1@hexbear.net 27 points 3 months ago

prioritize safety and awareness through rapid human verification

The “rapid human verification”:

broken

[–] cerealkiller@hexbear.net 25 points 3 months ago (1 children)
[–] HexReplyBot@hexbear.net 2 points 3 months ago

I found a YouTube link in your comment. Here are links to the same video on alternative frontends that protect your privacy:

[–] SerLava@hexbear.net 23 points 3 months ago

"working as intended"

THRVTH NVKE

[–] Evilphd666@hexbear.net 22 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

The acorn has been dethroned .

The AI company should be sued for tramatic emotional distress.

[–] Yuritopiaposadism@hexbear.net 21 points 3 months ago

but claimed the system “functioned as intended,”

It just works!

[–] shallot@hexbear.net 15 points 3 months ago

Sir he’s too cheesy

[–] LangleyDominos@hexbear.net 11 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Dark future where commercials for Doritos are news stories about people being almost killed by cops.

[–] 30_to_50_Feral_PAWGs@hexbear.net 9 points 3 months ago

Taki Allen was hanging out with friends after football practice on October 20 when multiple police cars suddenly pulled up.

Not just Doritos, apparently