Flock Safety attempts to curb police abuse of its surveillance cameras after scandals
Summary
Flock Safety, a company that provides license plate scanning cameras to law enforcement, is now requiring agencies to activate safety features that track and review how the cameras are used. This change comes after reports that some officers abused the system to stalk people and privacy concerns about data sharing and retention.Key Facts
- Flock Safety’s cameras scan about 20 billion license plates in the US every month.
- Law enforcement customers must now enable features that audit officers’ use of the system to prevent abuse.
- If the system detects unusual activity, the user will be suspended until a review is completed.
- Agencies can limit sharing scanned license plate data with other jurisdictions to specific case types, like stolen vehicles or missing persons.
- The default time for storing license plate data will be reduced from 30 days to 7 days, though exceptions can be made for ongoing investigations.
- Concerns exist about the system being used to target immigrants and people seeking abortions, especially after changes to abortion rights laws.
- Privacy experts remain worried that no amount of restrictions can fully protect against mass surveillance risks posed by widespread camera networks.
- Flock Safety gained attention after Amazon Ring planned then canceled integrating Flock’s license plate reading technology into its doorbell cameras.
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