Artificial intelligence against prison threats: A disruptive innovation in X-ray screening

PRESS RELEASE

CONROE, Texas — Security in correctional facilities is more than just walls and locks. It is a daily battle against invisible threats: narcotics, mobile phones, weapons. These items are often concealed inside the human body—swallowed, inserted into the rectum, or hidden in the oral cavity. Conventional visual inspections or millimeter-wave scanners are ineffective in such cases.

This is where transmission X-ray body scanners play a crucial role, offering the ability to see beyond the surface and detect contraband of all compositions hidden deep within.

The role of X-ray screening in correctional settings

Transmission X-ray scanners are not a luxury but a necessity. They are engineered to detect items that are physiologically concealed: swallowed packages, rectal insertions, or hidden in oral cavities. Commonly intercepted contraband includes:

• Narcotics (capsules, balloons, foil wraps)
• Mobile phones and SIM cards
• Sharp objects or improvised weapons
• Lighters, wires, batteries
• Tobacco
• Currency

These objects threaten safety, enable criminal coordination, and compromise institutional control.

Why millimeter-wave and backscatter systems are not effective
Millimeter-wave and Backscatter Systems were designed to detect objects under clothing, not inside the body. Their detection capabilities are severely limited to contraband size, composition, and location. These systems lack the penetration depth required to visualize internally hidden threats and were ultimately phased out in most prison environments.

The term “full-body personnel screening system” is often a legacy phrase from that era. In today’s high-risk facilities, only penetrating X-ray systems offer true full-body contraband and threat detection.
LINEV Systems US Inc. (LINEV): A global pioneer
LINEV Systems US Inc. (LINEV®) was the first company worldwide to propose, patent, and commercialize transmission X-ray technology for human screening. This innovation redefined how correctional facilities approach internal contraband detection.

Today, LINEV offers a full range of human X-ray scanners, both mobile and stationary. Its imaging quality significantly exceeds that of comparable systems and approaches the clarity of digital medical radiography. The visualization is precise enough to detect foreign objects regardless of size or location—swallowed, hidden in clothing, or concealed in shoes.

AI as the only viable solution: Introducing DruGuard and A-EYE

Internally branded as LINEV DruGuard and A-EYE, the proprietary artificial intelligence platforms developed by LINEV represents the core intelligence in both generations of the CLEARPASS system. These advanced software algorithms are not just add-on modules — they power an integrated decision engine that enables:

• Detection of objects hidden inside the body or under clothing
• Real-time on-screen drug and threat highlighting with a displayed probability of detection
• Object classification by type
• Consistent operator-engagement with detailed reporting functionality

Now in its 4^th evolution, DruGuard is a powerful tool which reinforces the operator’s decision-making process by focusing their attention to anomalies which are consistent with internally concealed narcotics.

In combination with A-EYE, the two intelligent platforms propel operator performance and provide unparalleled automated detection, putting significant burden of analysis on the screening tool and not analysist. Together, DruGuard and A-EYE builds accountability and provides operators and their supervisors with tools to improve contraband interdiction results. Training is minimal, and both performance and operational consistency is dramatically increased.

Deployment results: US prison experience

Prisons and County Jails throughout the United States have been adopting transmission X-ray body scanners at an average rate of 400+ per year. This staggering deployment of the technology is fuelled by the need to reduce or eliminate overdose deaths and costly legal settlements brought against the agencies for failure to maintain a safe environment for offenders and those addicted to dangerous narcotics. To date, LINEV Systems has deployed more than 1000 transmission X-ray body scanners throughout the country in 42 states. The average cost of a transmission X-ray full body scanner is offset within the first 12 months of operation.

Deployment Results: UK prison experience
According to the UK Ministry of Justice, since July 2020, the deployment of 75 transmission X-ray body scanners across men’s closed prisons has led to the detection of more than 46,900 suspected contraband items—including drugs, weapons, and mobile phones—hidden inside inmates’ bodies.

These scanners, powered by A-EYE, played a vital role in the government’s “10 Prisons Project,” which achieved:

• A 16% reduction in violence
• Up to 50% decrease in positive drug tests

These results highlight how automated threat detection delivers measurable operational impact.

Why inmate screening is harder rhan baggage screening
Screening humans is fundamentally more complex than screening bags. Luggage scanning presents objects on a neutral background. The human body is full of similar-density tissues and bone structures that obscure contraband. Additionally, individuals scanned vary greatly in height, density, and often present in X-ray imaging with various normal conditions such as constipation, indigestion, and gas.

This makes interpretation difficult even for trained professionals—let alone minimally trained prison staff. The need for AI-based classification and interpretation is significantly higher in these environments.
CLEARPASS system evolution: A-EYE in both generations

The first-generation CLEARPASS introduced high-resolution imaging for full-body screening. The new CLEARPASS C.I. integrates A-EYE at the architectural level, delivering fully autonomous threat recognition and critical zone targeting with ultra-low radiation.

Both systems now benefit from the same A-EYE platform, which ensures continuity in threat detection, software compatibility, and upgrade potential. A-EYE is continuously updated using real-world operational feedback, improving accuracy and robustness in dynamic prison environments.

Competitive context (based on public data)

LINEV® is a registered trademark of LINEV Systems US Inc.

About LINEV Systems US Inc. (LINEV)
LINEV® is a pioneer in transmission X-ray body screening technologies with AI integration. With over two decades of innovation, the company provides advanced solutions for correctional institutions, customs, and border control. All technologies are built in compliance with ANSI, IEC, IAEA, ISO, and FDA/TSA standards.

For more information, visit: www.linevsystems.com

Advancing Security Through Continuous Innovation

Security in prisons is not just about what you can see. It’s about detecting what no one wants to see—until it’s too late.

With CLEARPASS® powered by DruGuard® and A-EYE™, LINEV® delivers a disruptive innovation that eliminates guesswork, operator bias, and interpretation errors. It is not just a product—it is a redefinition of operational safety in the correctional world.
This is not a promise. It’s a proven system. And it’s working now.