Lie-detection tests have not been scientifically proven to reliably detect deception at an individual level, yet they are being marketed by several companies and have even been admitted as evidence in an Indian court. This calls for a critical appraisal of these technologies and regulatory measures to prevent misuse.
This excerpt is from the November Nature Neuroscience Editorial (11, 1231; 2008). According to the Editorial:
A court near Mumbai, India, recently became the first to admit a neuroscience-based lie-detection technique as evidence. Although the use of this technology for such accurate lie detection is dubious, this court used evidence from an electroencephalography-based technique to convict a suspect of murder. The judge cited this test, administered to the suspect by a state forensics laboratory, as proof that the suspect’s brain held ‘experiential knowledge’ about the crime that only the killer could have. The verdict: a life sentence in prison. Although such ‘evidence’ is currently not admissible in US or European courts, several companies are already developing and marketing the use of neuroscience-based lie-detection technology: No Lie MRI; and CEPHOS. The Editorial concludes that “erroneous results could have devastating consequences for individuals; we have an obligation to speak up and flag the many caveats associated with these technologies”.