Can I Trust My Anomaly Detection System? A Case Study Based on Explainable AI

Muhammad Rashid, Elvio G. Amparore, Enrico Ferrari, Damiano Verda

Abstract: Generative models based on variational autoencoders are a popular technique for detecting anomalies in images in a semi-supervised context. A common approach employs the anomaly score to detect the presence of anomalies, and it is known to reach high level of accuracy on benchmark datasets. However, since anomaly scores are computed from reconstruction disparities, they often obscure the detection of various spurious features, raising concerns regarding their actual efficacy.