Gun violence in the United States continues to be a plague to public spaces. Schools, hospitals, venues, stadiums — wherever people gather, the risk of a gun-related incident lurks. 

According to Pew Research Center findings, nearly 47,000 people died of gun-related injuries in the U.S. in 2023. FBI data shows 105 of these deaths amassed during active shooter incidents. There were 332 school shootings, grades K-12, last year. 

This is a heavy topic that brings a mix of emotions from all sides. But regardless, people’s lives are at stake, and those in risk management roles want to keep their people safe. 

Human Ingenuity, Technical Touch 

Technology continues to advance, aided by the adoption of artificial intelligence, increased global reliance on digital solutions and rapid innovation. It’s one promising tool stakeholders are turning to in an effort to curb gun violence. 

“Technology is one way insurance and the private sector are stepping up,” said Morgan Shrubb, head of terrorism, North America, AXA XL. “Insurance and these tech startups, and even just regular people with engineering backgrounds, are trying to find a solution.” 

This ingenuity — and proclivity toward tech-based solutions — has expanded gun violence prevention and risk mitigation efforts for all types of institutions. AI surveillance, gunshot detection sensors, integrated security systems and more are being employed to prevent incidents or stop them in their tracks. 

Rafael Villalobos Jr., deputy general counsel, litigation, enterprise risk management and legal operations, Capital Health, saw an opportunity to implement these very tech tactics within his health care system. 

Rafael Villalobos Jr., deputy general counsel, litigation, enterprise risk management and legal operations, Capital Health

“About three years ago, I had asked to see the weapons policy, and I learned that there was no weapons policy. So, it became evident that we had some catching up to do,” Villalobos said. That catching up included creating a policy, implementing training and deciding on the tools that would assist in protecting staff and patients from potential gun violence. 

“We [risk managers] have a duty, we have an obligation, to protect our staff and patients and keep them safe from external harm, as well as internal harm,” he said. 

Tech for the Taking  

As part of an effort to curb potential workplace violence incidents, Villalobos turned to the tech available to him. 

“There are differences between weapons detection systems and metal detection systems. The system we decided upon is called Evolv,” he shared. “It’s essentially two uprights with a magnetic field. People walk between the uprights, and if any ferrous material passes through it, the uprights will alert the security team.” 

The uprights are enhanced with artificial intelligence, which can pinpoint the location of a potential weapon, the size of the object, the shape of the object, the density of the object, as well as the conductivity of the object.  

“Those data points then essentially align with different buckets. By way of example, it’s going to say, ‘Yeah, this is a potential explosive device,’ or ‘this is a gun,’ and that’s when it alerts,” Villalobos said. 

Capital Health, which won a 2024 Theo Award from Risk & Insurance® for these very worker protection efforts, has the Evolv system fitted at main entrances, as well as the emergency department. It’s unassuming in nature, allowing health care workers to continue to provide care while simultaneously preventing weapons from entering facilities in the first place.  

And weapon detection devices are just the start.  

Another up-and-coming tech gaining traction is weapon-detection cameras fitted with AI. These camera systems are trained to spot brandished weapons across open spaces and will alert the proper authorities if one were to be discovered.  

There are also gunshot detection sensors that will alert authorities should a loud bang be detected.  

“We are seeing clients looking at and adopting AI gun detection technologies … to identify the presence of firearms and decrease response times for things like gunshots or active threats,” said Joey Sylvester, area senior vice president, Gallagher, who specializes in cyber/AI and violent acts coverage. 

With gunshot detection tech, audio sensors are placed strategically across the institution’s campus, be that a school or an office complex or otherwise. Then, if a bang is detected, “the sensors triangulate where the sound is coming from based on the time it takes for the sound to travel to the sensor,” Sylvester explained. “Then it flags it to a security operation center, where somebody can look at it and determine whether or not … it was a gunshot and report to law enforcement.”

Joey Sylvester, area senior vice president, Gallagher

It’s all set up in an effort to get first responders on the scene that much faster. Sylvester said this process can be completed in under a minute, which would significantly impact the time it takes officers to respond. 

“[We’re] seeing [this technology] in a lot of K-12 schools and university settings. But you could see this kind of thing be adopted across anywhere where there are gatherings of people,” he said. 

Community centers, large museums or cultural institutions, houses of worship — all considered soft targets and all that have seen gun violence incidents in the past — are “places where this kind of technology could be implemented to help protect the people who go in through their doors every day,” Sylvester said. 

Monitoring social media and other online platforms is another key driver to curbing gun violence.  

“We partner with a response firm called S-RM, which provides pre-event services to clients, including if the client receives a threat of a mass shooting,” said Shrubb. “We didn’t want to be just an insurance carrier that, when a shooting happened, we cut a check and move on. We want to provide services to clients that will help before, during and after an event.” 

S-RM is a cyber intelligence and global crisis response consultancy that will monitor social media for potential threatening posts. That could be something as obvious as a person of interest posting about a new weapon they’ve purchased to sweeping the dark web for unsavory behaviors.  

And S-RM is not alone; there are other similar firms available to assist insureds in their pursuit to prevent gun violence at their institutions. 

“These firms work with local law enforcement to come up with a game plan to mitigate and stop a threat from coming to fruition, while providing the client with advice and guidance along the way,” said Shrubb. 

Roadblocks and Risk Management 

To be sure, technology holds promise in curbing gun violence. But like all developments, it should be reviewed for its potential risk factors. 

“When we’re talking about AI driving some of this technology, that brings with it its own possible risks to privacy or algorithmic discrimination or brittleness of the AI platform,” Sylvester said. 

AI is only as good as how it is trained. Humans are inherently flawed, and because humans often train AI, the system can be inadvertently created with unconscious biases. For example, facial recognition technology has been known to misidentify people, most often from minority groups. 

Morgan Shrubb, head of terrorism, North America, AXA XL

“Anybody considering adopting this tech should also consider conducting an AI impact assessment or privacy impact assessment. They should be making sure that any other risks that come with adopting a new technology are identified and managed appropriately,” Sylvester said. 

Another hurdle to clear is financial. In an ideal world, all schools, universities and other vulnerable public spaces would be equipped with these potential life-saving technologies. But tech can be expensive, and the institutions that would utilize them are often operating with limited funds. 

“When you have public entities, they often don’t have the funds. So, you have to find funding through private means, like private donors or foundations or fundraising events,” said Shrubb. 

Insurers can also further provide relief for insureds during renewal season, potentially offering discounts to institutions that are implementing technology to curb gun violence risks. 

“Our goal [as a] broker is to tell their story in the best possible light. If they have an exposure to this, and they are being charged premium dollars relative to this … you better believe we’re going to look to save premium dollars come the next renewal. It’s not a guarantee that it would pay for itself, but it’s our job to advocate for them by highlighting these sorts of enhanced risk mitigation strategies to the underwriters,” Sylvester added. &