Columbia Police Department warns of AI dangers following false shooting report
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
The Columbia Police Department is warning residents of crime apps that use artificial intelligence following a false report of a shooting on Tuesday.
On Tuesday morning, the app CrimeRadar alerted users that a 17-year-old was shot in downtown Columbia at 7:13 a.m., according to a CPD Facebook Post.
The post claimed that CrimeRadar transcribed dispatch communication from other jurisdictions, including Randolph County, Jackson County, Perry County and Genevieve County, which could be a reference to Ste. Genevieve County in southeast Missouri.
The post adds that CrimeRadar has a history of inaccuracies with its AI software.
"While they may seem helpful, these tools often rely on incomplete data, lack context, and can easily spread misinformation," CPD Chief Jill Schlude wrote in the post. "They are not connected to verified law enforcement systems, and their automated outputs can mislabel incidents, misidentify locations, or amplify unverified rumors, creating unnecessary fear and confusion."
According to a study by the European Broadcasting Union and the BBC researchers analyzed 3,000 responses to questions about the news from AI assistants ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini and Perplexity. They found 81% of the AI responses had some kind of problem, including 45% that had at least one significant issue.
University of Missouri Free Press Professor Kathy Kiely adds that AI programs are in early stages and the best thing for users to do is verify information.
"Human beings are biased towards the negative," Kiely said. "It's just a matter of taking a deep breath and making a couple of phone calls, checking a couple of websites or other people reporting the same thing."
CrimeRadar US did not immediately respond to a request for comment. CPD leadership was unavailable for an interview.
