Flock surveillance cameras targeted around the country amid opposition
Cities and activists are targeting the company’s 120,000-camera network as police misuse reports and privacy concerns fuel contract cancellations and vandalism.
- In recent weeks, citizens nationwide have forcibly disabled dozens of Flock Safety cameras across rural and urban areas, reflecting a rare bipartisan movement against the surveillance company's nationwide network.
- Flock Safety operates 120,000 automated license plate reader and pan, tilt, and zoom cameras across the U.S., creating a connected nationwide latticework that tracks vehicle movements across state lines, unlike previous localized surveillance systems.
- Reports indicate more than a dozen cases where police used the system to stalk ex-partners, while a capability called "FreeForm" allows users to search by race, clothing, or tattoos, contradicting company claims.
- Officials in Fort Collins, Colorado; Eugene, Oregon; Madison, Wisconsin; Knoxville, Tennessee; Syracuse, New York; and Walla Walla, Washington, have deactivated cameras or canceled Flock contracts in response to privacy concerns.
- Constitutional conservatives and progressive activists unite against the surveillance state, arguing that constant vehicle tracking violates expectations of privacy and freedom of movement—a rare ideological consensus in a politically divided country.
32 Articles
32 Articles
What are Flock cameras and why are they so controversial?
Police say Flock cameras help them solve crimes, while critics worry they make it far too easy to track where people drive. Did you know that the next time you drive across town, a camera you barely notice could record where your car goes?Known as Flock cameras, the small black devices sit beside roads, near intersections, and at the entrances to neighborhoods and parking lots, collecting information about every …
Observit, a mobile video surveillance company in public transport, has, together with its partner RUF Group, been awarded two new contracts to supply camera and software solutions to train operators in the Netherlands. The projects include approximately 600 cameras.
Flock surveillance cameras draw protests, proposed federal funding ban
Automated license plate reader cameras made by Atlanta-based Flock Safety are facing a national backlash that has moved from local council meetings to Congress, with a federal lawmaker now proposing to cut funding to agencies that use them. If you haven’t heard of Flock cameras, here’s the short version: the company sells internet-connected cameras that photograph passing vehicles, read license plates and use computer vision to log details like …
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