What You Should Know about Bulletproof School Supplies

In 2024, there were more than 200 incidents of gunfire on school grounds, resulting in 59 deaths and 163 injuries. School shootings have been on the rise since the 1970s. Children today are four times more likely to experience gun violence at school than children half a century ago. This has led to the emergence of a new kind of civilian tactical gear: bulletproof school supplies.

Created for kids and aimed at concerned parents, bulletproof items range from clipboards to backpacks and even pencil pouches. While these products may appear to be the solution to what many parents may fear the most when they send their kids off to school, these companies’ claims may not be as bulletproof as they seem.

Here are some examples of the marketing at issue.

Hardwire bulletproof clipboards, backpack inserts

In the “School & Office Solutions” section of its website, Hardwire sells a $149 bulletproof clipboard that the company claims offers a “lightweight layer of protection in an active shooter emergency.” Hardwire also sells bulletproof bag inserts starting at $139 that are designed to slip into backpacks, as shown in images featured on the company’s website.

Hardwire claims that its clipboards and bag inserts are “engineered with the world’s strongest materials,” but doesn’t specify what those materials are.

In the “Family Solutions” section of its website, Hardwire features a review from a customer who purchased a bulletproof backpack insert for each of his three high school students.

Below this, Hardwire tells parents that they are “not alone,” citing a national survey that the company said found nearly 3 in 4 parents worry about a shooting happening at their child’s school.

Premier Body Armor bulletproof pencil pouch

Among the bulletproof school supplies Premier Body Armor offers is a pencil pouch that sells for $185. On the pencil pouch’s product page, the company directly talks to parents concerned about their child’s safety at school:

Protecting your children from danger is perhaps the most challenging thing we do as parents, especially while they are away at school or other activities. When you can’t be there to protect them yourself, giving them a shield against those who would want to harm them is not only practical but unfortunately, vital. Designed to fit seamlessly into any 3-ring binder, this lightweight, pencil pouch will provide you and/or your loved ones with years of dependable service.

In addition to the bulletproof pencil pouch, Premier Body Armor sells what it claims is the “world’s only bulletproof laptop case” for $299.

Atomic Defense bulletproof backpack

Atomic Defense sells a “Bulletproof Backpack for Kids” starting at $229 that the company describes as a “regular backpack, but with the added benefit of bulletproof armor” in the form of a removable bulletproof insert. Atomic Defense claims the backpack is specifically designed “to protect children from firearm threats” and offers different levels of protection ranging in cost.

NIJ marketing

All of these companies claim their bulletproof school supplies meet or exceed body armor ratings established by the National Institute of Justice. Hardwire advertises that its clipboard offers a “NIJ Level 3A” defense and its bag inserts provide “NIJ Level 3 & 3A” protection; Premier Body Armor claims that its pencil pouch has been tested to “meet the NIJ ballistic standards for Level IIIA”; and Atomic Defense allows consumers interested in purchasing its backpack to choose between NIJ 3A and NIJ 3+ protection.

While consumers might interpret these body armor ratings to mean that the NIJ has certified the products or endorses them, neither is true. The NIJ only tests body armor for law enforcement; it does not test or certify products for civilian use. In fact, in response to news reports that repeated misleading claims made by companies marketing ballistic backpacks as NIJ-certified, the Justice Department, which oversees the NIJ, released a statement in 2018 clarifying this very point:

The National Institute of Justice—the research, development, and evaluation agency of the Department of Justice—has never tested nor certified ballistic items, such as backpacks, blankets, or briefcases, other than body armor for law enforcement. Marketing that claims NIJ testing or certification for such products is false.

And just because an ad doesn’t literally say that the product is “NIJ-certified,” that doesn’t mean the company is off the hook if the message consumers take away from the ad is that the product has NIJ certification. Marketers are responsible for both express and implied claims.

“Bulletproof” items don’t protect against all bullets

But even if these “bulletproof” school supplies provide the level of protection advertised, they do not protect against all bullets. For example, equipment rated NIJ Level 3A, the most common body armor rating TINA.org found advertised, does not provide protection against ammunition from rifles, which are increasingly being used in school shootings. According to the NIJ, body armor rated Level 3A has been shown to stop .357 SIG and .44 Magnum ammunition fired from longer-barreled handguns. So how can these companies really claim that their school supplies are bulletproof?

The NIJ warns that there is no such thing as “bulletproof” body armor. The agency says “ballistic-resistant” body armor can protect against a significant number of handguns and rifles, and has saved the lives of thousands of police officers, but bulletproof is a misnomer.

Companies respond

In response to a request for comment, Hardwire CEO George Tunis said the company uses the term bulletproof “generically,” stating:

Hardwire does not claim that its products stop every threat known to man or are impenetrable. Instead, for each product, Hardwire specifically lists the projectiles or threats that item is designed and tested to stop.

Tunis said the level of ballistic protection is listed in many places on each product page. However, some of this qualifying language was added only after TINA.org reached out to the company, as illustrated by the following screenshots taken before and after we sent our inquiry.

Before:

After:

Before:

After:

With regard to the company’s use of NIJ ratings in the marketing of its school supplies, Tunis said that Hardwire does not claim that its clipboards and bag inserts are “NIJ-certified,” adding, “Although the NIJ does not directly certify school products, there is still a NIJ ballistic standard that is applicable to this category of product.”

The Hardwire CEO said the company understands the concerns raised by TINA.org and acknowledges “additional oversight is needed on the subject of protective products used for school safety.” He said the company has offered to meet with Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, who recently sent a letter to the FTC urging the agency to investigate companies selling bulletproof school supplies, including Hardwire. (The letter also mentioned Premier Body Armor and Atomic Defense.) Tunis said the company’s backpack inserts and clipboards are made of “ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene.”

With regard to Atomic Defense’s bulletproof claims, the company told TINA.org that the actual protection level of its backpacks is “dependent on the armor rating chosen by the customer” and that the company makes “every effort to ensure this information is clear on our product descriptions.” Atomic Defense acknowledged that there may be “misunderstandings regarding third-party testing and endorsement claims” related to its use of NIJ ratings but as of this writing hasn’t made any changes to its marketing.

Premier Body Armor did not respond to TINA.org’s request for comment.

The bottom line

Parents are understandably concerned about the safety of their children when they are away from home. But before purchasing protective school supplies, consumers should be sure they understand what they’re getting.

Find more of our coverage on bulletproof products aimed at parents here.