Key Security Gaps Revealed by 2025’s Active Shooter Cases

The year 2025 does not stand out as a statistical peak for active shooter incidents. In fact, available data suggest a gradual decline from the alarming highs recorded in the early 2020s. Yet this offers cold comfort. Each incident, regardless of frequency, is a huge tragedy and a painful reminder of where physical security fails and how we can fix it.

Striking incidents of 2025

● February 22, 2025 – Shiloh, Pennsylvania: Shooting and hostages at UPMC Memorial Hospital. Two dead (including the attacker) and seven injured.

● August 27, 2025 – Minneapolis, Minnesota: Shooting during a school Mass at Annunciation Catholic Church. Two kids died and nearly 20 people hurt.

● September 10, 2025 – Evergreen, Colorado: Shooting at Evergreen High School. Two students hurt; the 16-year-old shooter killed himself.

● October 2025 – St. Helena Island, South Carolina: Shooting at Willie’s Bar and Grill during a high school reunion thing. Four dead, fifteen hurt.

● November 29, 2025 – Near Stockton, California: Mass shooting at a kid’s birthday party at the Monkey Space event hall. Four dead (three were kids), thirteen hurt.

● December 13, 2025 – Providence, Rhode Island: Shooting at Brown University. Two dead, nine hurt.

● December 14, 2025 – Sydney, Australia: Mass shooting at Bondi Beach. At least fifteen dead, dozens more hurt.

Physical security gaps revealed

#1 High-risk environment with no real monitoring Shooters consistently targeted places with large crowds or symbolic meaning, including places of worship. Take for example a Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach, an open academic setting like Brown University, or an informal event hall. These venues share a deadly mix: high density and minimal security. Despite their obvious risk, they relied on an assumption of safety rather than active threat monitoring.

#2 No live perimeter or exterior threat detection In multiple incidents, attackers exploited areas outside a building where surveillance was weak or nonexistent. At Brown University, the shooter moved through exterior spaces with poor camera coverage. At Annunciation Catholic Church, the attacker never entered the building. He fired dozens of rounds from outside, targeting people through windows and barricading exits. All the focus was on the inside, and the outside was wide open.

#3 Delayed, fragmented and inconsistent situational awareness A consistent failure was the inability to form a clear, shared picture of the attack as it unfolded. At Brown, alerts were delayed and confusing. At Bondi Beach, cops responded quickly to 911 calls but had no real-time information on the shooter’s location or movements. At the Monkey Space party shooting, responders were initially directed to the wrong location, wasting valuable time. Across these cases, the pattern is clear. When awareness depends on phone calls and eyewitness reports, it arrives late, wrong, or not complete. Without a clear, up-to-date picture, responders can't be quick or accurate.

#4 No early behavioral or weapon detection Security was all about reacting after something happened. Nobody spotted threats before the shooting started. At Brown and Monkey Space, no one noticed weird behavior, like someone acting suspicious in a mask until it was too late. At Bondi Beach, no one cared that people walked around with rifles. If you can't spot trouble early, you can't stop it.

What effective security looks like

When it comes to stopping active shooters, no single measure is enough. The most effective defense is a layered security strategy, where multiple systems work together, creating a robust shield.

The first thing is physical protection: secure perimeters, controlled access, and reinforced doors and windows. These barriers provide the crucial first line of defense, slow down attackers and reduce harm.

Second, trained personnel - security guards, who know how to spot threats, what to do, and how to react during a crisis.

The third layer is advanced technologies working independently 24/7, especially AI-powered gun detection and real-time alert systems. These tools identify threats like visible weapons the moment they appear and trigger immediate, precise alerts to early responders and assigned endpoints.

Finally, this entire system must be integrated with rapid communication protocols and community awareness programs to ensure swift, coordinated action and encourage early reporting of concerning behavior.

Individually, each layer has limits. But when physical defenses, human expertise, intelligent technology, and coordinated response operate as one unified system, they transform security from reactive to proactive, which can save lots of lives.

Closing the gaps in active shooter response with intelligent video analytics

Evergreen High School case shows that layered security works together with lockdown procedures in place, but it needs intelligence. Security doors successfully limited the shooter’s access and likely prevented more casualties. However, physical barriers alone cannot detect or interpret threats. Notice that the first 911 call lasted about 40 seconds, and it takes time to gather information from someone, especially when they are in crisis.

That is when AI-powered video analytics can help. Here is how:

Overcoming the limits of human surveillance with real-time monitoring A security guard can’t watch every camera without losing focus. Whereas smart AI security technologies never get tired or distracted. They can watch all CCTV cameras at once 24/7 and are trained to spot specific real dangers in real-time and send an instant alert with all the necessary information. This turns cameras from simple recorders into active tools that can help prevent an attack.

Enabling proactive defense through early threat detection Police are usually called after the shooting starts. Every second lost costs lives. AI can identify a threat in its earliest stages, like someone suspiciously loitering outside a building, and alert security immediately. This early warning can trigger a lockdown and get law enforcement officers on the scene faster.

Providing real-time situational awareness for unified response During an attack, information is messy. Different people see different things, causing confusion and slowing down the response. AI fixes this by giving security, police and dispatchers the same clear, real-time information. It can show the shooter’s location on a map, what they look like, and where they’re headed. This unified picture helps responders act faster and more effectively to end the threat.