At least 10 local governments have moved to drop Flock’s surveillance cameras since summer
The concerns range from privacy to how data is shared (and with whom) to procurement concerns.
Key points
- At least 10 local governments and police departments have moved since summer to curb or end Flock Safety use.
- Concerns include privacy, data sharing, procurement and misuse of the technology by officers.
- Flock says its cameras help solve crimes and that customers own and control their data.
At least 10 local governments and police departments have moved since this summer to curb, restrict or end their use of Flock Safety surveillance technology, TechCrunch reported. The pushback comes as concerns grow about mass surveillance and data privacy.
Flock, founded in 2017, sells license plate readers, drones and microphone-based devices that detect gunshots and other sounds. More than 100,000 Flock cameras are in use nationwide, according to the article.
Where contracts were ended
Monroe, Ohio; Newburgh, New York; Richmond, Virginia; Hopkinton, Massachusetts; New Bedford, Massachusetts; and Lansing, Michigan have all moved to end their Flock contracts in the past three months. Police in East Bridgewater and Grafton, Massachusetts also announced plans to stop using the cameras.
This week, residents of League City, Texas voted against their police department's continued use of Flock license plate readers, and the cameras are set to be removed. Asheville, North Carolina ended access in August, and the El Paso County Sheriff's Office in Colorado said in September it would stop using Flock.
We have the tools, training, and experience to locate and apprehend criminals without relying on Flock cameras
— Sheriff Joseph Roybal
Privacy and misuse concerns
Concerns cited range from privacy and data sharing to procurement and misuse. In August, an officer in Brentwood, Missouri was accused of using Flock cameras to stalk his ex-wife during their divorce, and in September an East Texas officer was sentenced to prison for stalking his ex-girlfriend and her family with Flock.
Ithaca, New York passed a resolution in March to terminate its contract, citing reports that federal agents used Flock data without authorization from the contracting locality. Flock said it does not sell data and does not have a contract with ICE, and that every customer owns its data and controls who it is shared with.
