Improving face morph detection with the pairs training effect

Abstract

It is becoming increasingly common for face morphs (weighted combinations of two people's photographs) to be submitted for inclusion in an official document, such as a passport. These images may sufficiently resemble both individuals that they can be used by either person in a ‘fraudulently obtained genuine’ document. Problematically, people are poor at detecting face morphs and there is limited evidence that this can be improved. Here, we tested whether the ‘pairs training effect’ (working in pairs, which we know improves unfamiliar face matching) can improve face morph detection. We found morph detection was more accurate when working in a pair. Further, the lower performer in the pair maintained this benefit when completing the task again individually. We conclude that the pairs training effect translates to face morph detection, and these findings have important implications for improving the detection of face morphs at the initial application stage.