'The risk of misuse is too great': Tempe turns off Flock system
Tempe said monthly audits found no misuse, but officials cited privacy risks and recent allegations elsewhere in Arizona.
- On Wednesday, Tempe, Arizona, shut down its network of 33 Flock Safety license plate readers and announced plans to terminate its contract with the surveillance company, citing privacy risks and alleged misuse reported in other jurisdictions.
- Recent controversies in nearby Arizona cities drove the decision, including an officer's alleged misuse of the system to track his wife in Apache Junction and an audit anomaly that prompted Chandler to discontinue its cameras.
- According to a database released by the Institute for Justice, 92 local governments across the U.S. have canceled or declined to renew their ALPR contracts since the start of 2025, not counting temporary pauses or provider switches.
- Tempe Mayor Corey Woods stated the city will not replace the system, saying while cameras "have helped our police officers do their jobs," the "risk of misuse is too great" to maintain operations.
- Although cameras may remain visible until Flock removes equipment, no new license plate data is being collected, and existing records will be automatically deleted after 30 days unless connected to an active investigation.
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Cities Pull Flock License Plate Cameras as Privacy and Misuse Concerns Mount
Tempe, Arizona, and a growing list of local governments are shutting down Flock Safety camera networks amid concerns about warrantless tracking, artificial intelligence search capabilities and documented misuse, with more than 100 jurisdictions reported to have canceled contracts with automated license plate reader providers.
Cities pull flock license plate cameras as privacy and misuse...
Tempe, Arizona, and a growing list of local governments are shutting down Flock Safety camera networks amid concerns about warrantless tracking, artificial intelligence search capabilities and documented misuse, with more than 100 jurisdictions reported to have canceled contracts with automated license plate reader providers. Local governments around the country are reconsidering automated license plate reader networks as concerns grow over how …
The Epoch Times
Growing Number of Cities Getting Rid of Flock Cameras
A growing number of municipalities are ending their use of Flock Safety cameras amid concerns about how the automated license plate readers capture people’s movement. Flock has installed thousands of cameras across 49 states, and the data is accessible to law enforcement agencies through the Flock platform. Tempe, Arizona, officials said on Wednesday they’ve turned off their Flock system and are ending their contract with the company. “While th…
Nearly 100 Local Governments Across U.S. Have Turned Off Their Flock Cameras Amid Growing Backlash
Photo by Tony Webster via Flickr under a Creative Commons License (CC BY 2.0). The city of Tempe, Arizona announced Wednesday it had “turned off” its Flock cameras and would not renew the contract, making it one of the latest local governments to do so amid growing national concerns about privacy and constitutional rights violations tied to the mass surveillance systems. The automated license plate recognition (ALPR) systems manufactured by Floc…
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