Boston dumps Flock, says it shared data nationwide in violation of contract
Summary
Boston stopped using Flock Safety’s license-plate reader cameras after the company shared data nationwide by mistake, breaking the contract. The sharing happened during a short trial period, and Boston quickly disabled the feature and no longer allows direct access to its data without proper requests.Key Facts
- Boston Police used about 45 Flock ALPR (Automated License Plate Reader) cameras in a trial from April to September 2025.
- Flock Safety accidentally enabled nationwide data sharing, letting other law agencies see Boston’s license plate data in the first few days of the trial.
- The contract said data sharing should be turned off, and Boston confirmed it was supposed to be disabled.
- After finding the error, Boston quickly turned off the sharing feature and restricted access to their data.
- Boston started new ALPR camera trials with Motorola in February 2026 and Axon in June 2026.
- The Electronic Frontier Foundation criticized Flock for allowing police to search license plate data with weak reasons, like “LOL” or “sexy.”
- Boston officials say they will continue using license-plate cameras if privacy rules and clear policies are in place.
- The city requires vendors to agree not to share data and to delete videos after 30 days unless needed for investigations.
Read the Full Article
This is a fact-based summary from The Actual News. Click below to read the complete story directly from the original source.
