LEHI, Utah — You've probably heard of people who claim to be able to tell if someone is lying just by looking in their eyes.
Well, a company based in Lehi called Converus says its EyeDetect technology can actually tell if someone is lying up to 90% of the time.
When someone mentions a lie detector, most people think of a polygraph, but EyeDetect is not one of those.
A polygraph looks for changes in the user's heart rate, breathing pattern, and whether they start to sweat.
The President and CEO of Converus, Todd Mickelsen said that unlike a polygraph test, EyeDetect looks for changes in the size of your pupils, and other things, to see if you're telling the truth.
"You can learn how to control your breathing, you can learn how to relax to not sweat, what you can’t do is control these involuntary changes that occur in your eyes," said Mickelsen.
EyeDetect uses an eye tracker to record changes in pupil size along with about 100 other factors, including how fast you read the question and how fast you answer.
The tool captures about half a million data points during a 15-minute test.
The data goes into an algorithm that scores the user on a scale of 1 to 100.
People who get a score closer to 1 are thought to be lying and those who get a score closer to 100 are thought to be more truthful.
Fox 13 Tech Reporter Jordan Hogan was challenged with trying to lie to EyeDetect and not let it figure out a number he had chosen.
He picked the number 7, and after a few rounds of questioning, Jordan was unable to trick the system.
Games aside, more attorneys are now asking judges to include EyeDetect tests in criminal court cases.
"There was a case in the state of New Mexico where this was the case, and it was actually accepted by the courts as evidence," said Mickelsen.
Attorneys submitting the tests as evidence are also submitting a polygraph test alongside them.
EyeDetect has an accuracy rating of up to 90% and according to the American Polygraph Association (APA) polygraphs have an accuracy rating of 83%, when done correctly.
The argument being made by attorneys submitting the tests is that the accuracy of both tests combined should be enough to determine if someone is lying or telling the truth.
In the end, it's up to a judge to decide whether they can be presented as evidence in a trial.
The defense team for Jerrod Baum filed a motion to have the results of an EyeDetect test and a polygraph be allowed as evidence in his murder trial.
Baum is the man facing murder charges in connection with the deaths of Riley Powell and Breezy Otteson back in 2019.
Prosecutors have until Monday, April 19th, 2021 to file their opposition to the motion.
After that, the defense will reply to the opposition and then ask the court to rule.
