United States of America

Flock Safety Tightens Privacy Rules

Is Flock a vital crime-fighting tool or an unaccountable surveillance dragnet ripe for abuse?

Published AUG 13

Story

Above: A Flock license plate reader and camera in Pleasant Hill, California, on April 16. Image credit: Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images

The Facts

Flock Safety announced Thursday that a criminal case number will be required before conducting searches by year's end for all police forces. This comes in light of privacy concerns regarding the AI security camera system, including reports of law enforcement misuse.
NBC News
FOX News
Flock Safety
Flock is also making its Audit Assistance tool mandatory for all customers, which flags abnormal search behavior for review and suspends use of the system. About a third of agencies had used it voluntarily.
The Washington Post
CNN
Flock, whose automated license plate readers are used by over 6,000 U.S. law enforcement agencies, is reducing data retention from 30 days to seven for data not tied to a case number. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said this exceeds their recommended 48-hour limit.
USA Today
NBC News
The Washington Times
CEO Garrett Langley said the changes address police misuse of Flock's technology, stating officers who abuse the system "will get caught." The ACLU called the reforms minor and said Flock remains a "mass surveillance company."
NBC News
USA Today
New York Post
The Institute for Justice, a libertarian nonprofit organization, launched a database documenting over 100 cases of alleged Flock misuse, including romantic stalking and wrongful detentions, warning these cases may be only a fraction of actual abuse.
UPI
Common Dreams
Backlash against Flock has led cities, including Los Angeles, to cancel or consider scrapping contracts, citing privacy and data ownership concerns. NPR reported at least 30 cities dropped Flock in the past year.
MIT Technology Review
Forbes
New York Post

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

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PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

Flock cameras track every driver, every day, whether or not anyone did anything wrong, turning ordinary trips into government surveillance data. Deputies and police chiefs have abused these databases to stalk exes, track women seeking abortion care and harass innocent people. This is a dragnet that cannot be reformed, only rejected.

Common Dreams

American Civil Liberties Union

Narrative B

Flock never gets credit for the missing persons found or crimes solved, something the system is amazingly powerful at. Social media misinformation necessitates the company clarifying what this game-changing technology actually does. Flock doesn't own the data collected and most law enforcement agencies use the technology responsibly. Flock is an invaluable law enforcement tool.

Flock Safety