Topic
Abuse & misuse
Documented cases of officers or agencies searching the system improperly.
48 articles · page 1 of 3 · RSS
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Sterling Heights leaders weigh future of Flock Safety cameras amid privacy concerns
clickondetroit.com
Sterling Heights, Michigan, council members debated renewing a Flock Safety contract covering 23 cameras at 19 locations, costing just over $84,000 a year and paid for with state criminal forfeiture funds. Police cited monthly audits, a 30-day retention period, 362 searches in the prior month, and solved robberies and an attempted homicide. Residents cited alleged Flock policy violations in Eastpointe and Oakland County. The council voted 4-3 to renew.
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Cops left the force. They kept tracking people with a powerful camera network.
yahoo.com
A Washington Post investigation documented at least 11 incidents in which unauthorized users accessed Flock license plate reader databases, including former officers whose log-ins were never deactivated and officers who shared credentials across agencies. Several cases involved tracking spouses or ex-partners, leading to criminal charges in Georgia and Indianapolis. Former employees said Flock resisted requiring multi-factor authentication to avoid friction in winning police contracts.
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More Texas Cities End Flock Agreements, Cover Cameras
texasscorecard.com
Hewitt ended its Flock Safety contract and Kyle's council voted 4-3 to cover its cameras, with Hewitt's city manager citing Governor Greg Abbott's pause on state funding and permits for ALPRs on state roads. Kyle residents may vote on a non-binding ballot question in May 2027. A former Lufkin officer received five years for 25,000 non-law-enforcement Flock searches.
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Sanders and AOC Target Flock Cameras With Bill to Ban Federal License Plate Tracking
hoodline.com
Senators Bernie Sanders and Jeff Merkley and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez introduced the Ban Flock Act, which would bar federal agencies from using automatic license plate readers, pause federal grants to jurisdictions with ALPR contracts, and allow lawsuits over federal use. The piece compiles competing camera counts, cancellations by dozens of localities, rival bills from Thomas Massie and Josh Hawley, and misuse cases including officers charged with tracking ex-partners.
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Harris County Judge Hopefuls Clash Over $868,975 Flock Camera Deal
hoodline.com
Four candidates for Harris County judge gave differing answers on whether to renew the county's $868,975 Flock Safety contract, which runs through June 2027. The article notes Harris County has paid Flock about $1.3 million since 2023, that Governor Abbott froze state funding for Flock cameras, and that officers in Katy and Pasadena faced charges or license surrender over unauthorized searches.
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Former Lufkin officer pleads to 5 years for 100 counts related to Flock camera misuse
kbtx.com
Former Lufkin, Texas officer Zachary Klein was sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to 100 counts of misuse of official information. Prosecutors said investigators found more than 25,000 improper database searches targeting his former girlfriend, her relatives, and people she had dated. The inquiry began after USA Today questioned the department, which then ran a Flock audit. Lufkin's use of Flock cameras remains suspended.
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California communities rethink Flock cameras over privacy concerns
spectrumlocalnews.com
Advocacy group DeFlock Sac Metro is campaigning against automated license plate readers in the Sacramento area, and Folsom is discontinuing its Flock contract while continuing to use Motorola plate readers. Secure Justice counts at least 19 California communities and more than 200 nationwide dropping Flock since 2021. Stockton heard that an officer was dismissed for misusing its Flock system. Flock cited new safeguards including seven-day default retention, and a University of South Carolina study found ALPRs cut vehicle thefts by 11%.
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FDOT deadline arrives for removal of Flock cameras from state roads
mynews13.com
The Florida Department of Transportation revoked permits for license plate readers on state road rights of way on Aug. 31, setting a Sept. 30 removal deadline, citing misuse, data privacy and surveillance concerns. Several Central Florida sheriff's offices reported removing or deactivating Flock cameras, and Osceola County canceled its Flock contract. Sumter County had already suspended its system after discovering misuse by an employee.
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SF Keeps Flock Cameras After 1.6M Illegal Queries: New Rules Weaker Than Company Standard
techtimes.com
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie imposed new rules on the city's roughly 500 Flock cameras, cutting vendor data retention from 12 months to 30 days, four times longer than Flock's own new seven-day default. The city kept its contract despite 1.6 million out-of-state queries of SFPD's database. Assemblymember Matt Haney plans a bill criminalizing ALPR misuse, which California law currently does not penalize.
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Flock’s nationwide surveillance network faces mounting scrutiny
biometricupdate.com
A US Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing examined Flock Safety's ALPR network after the company told investigators it conducts little oversight of customer searches and that some cameras can search images for people. Indiana prosecutors charged officers over thousands of personal lookups, Boston reported that a vendor error exposed its data externally, and a Florida woman testified she spent 13 days in jail after investigators relied on a Flock image.
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City Council passes temporary ordinance continuing Flock shutdown
newbedfordlight.org
The New Bedford City Council voted 8-3 for a temporary ordinance barring license plate reader use and blocking renewal of the city's Flock contract, which expires Nov. 12. Cameras have been off since August after two officers were accused of using them to track romantic partners. Police Chief Jason Thody sent an 11-page response backing audits, retention limits, and public reporting while opposing disclosure of camera locations.
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Columbus City Council will not introduce legislation on Flock cameras by end of September
wosu.org
Columbus City Council Member Emmanuel Remy said he will miss his stated goal of introducing legislation on Flock Safety license plate readers by the end of September, giving no new date. Mayor Andrew Ginther had paused use of the city's 65 Flock cameras after a police officer allegedly searched the same plate more than 200 times outside any investigation. Remy said the eventual package will cover surveillance technology broadly, and several council members oppose renewing the contract in December.
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Five Indianapolis police officers charged for misusing Flock cameras
indianapublicradio.org
Marion County prosecutors charged five Indianapolis Metropolitan Police officers with fraud and official misconduct over thousands of allegedly impermissible Flock license plate searches, including searches for ex-partners and women one officer pursued. The misuse surfaced after an officer self-reported and an audit followed. IMPD now requires case numbers and crime codes for searches but will not reduce its 301 leased cameras.
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Plymouth is latest Minnesota city to ditch Flock cameras
mprnews.org
The Plymouth, Minnesota city council voted to end use of the city's 16 Flock license plate reader cameras, with only the mayor dissenting. Council members cited concerns that agencies outside Plymouth could access the data, referencing reporting that federal agencies obtained Minnesota Flock data for immigration enforcement and that about 50 officers nationally were accused of misuse. Plymouth joins more than a dozen Minnesota jurisdictions pausing or ending Flock use.
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Three takeaways from the Senate hearing on Flock's camera network
yahoo.com
A Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing on Flock Safety heard from five witnesses, including a Florida woman jailed for 13 days after a camera image linked her SUV to a fatal crash. Testimony described more than 240 catalogued ALPR misuse incidents, unaudited searches in Norfolk, exposed camera administrative interfaces, and federal agents obtaining data through local officers. No company representative testified; Flock's CEO sent a letter instead.
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TODAY: US Senate hearing follows our investigations exposing police Flock abuse
atlantanewsfirst.com
The Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism scheduled a hearing titled "Always Watching: Flock's Nationwide AI Surveillance Network," inviting the CEOs of Flock Safety, Axon, Motorola Solutions and Verkada. The hearing follows reporting by Brendan Keefe documenting at least 19 Georgia cases in one year of officers arrested or relieved of duty for personal use of ALPR data, and Flock's removal of officer names and plate numbers from network audit logs.
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Texas freezes installation of Flock cameras along state roads
kvia.com
The Texas Department of Transportation stopped issuing permits for Flock cameras and other license plate readers along state roads at Gov. Greg Abbott's direction, a pause that does not remove existing devices, including more than 900 operated by the Department of Public Safety. The move followed Abbott's funding freeze after a Tribune investigation into $30 million directed toward over 3,200 cameras. Florida ordered removals in August.
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Sen. Wyden presses Flock CEO over allegations of surveillance platform abuse
ktvz.com
Senators Ron Wyden and Adam Schiff sent a letter to Flock Safety CEO Garrett Langley demanding answers about unauthorized use of the company's license plate reader network, including tracking of reproductive health travel and warrantless immigration searches. The letter cites a Washington Post analysis finding at least 50 officers charged or accused of misusing the system, and instructs Flock to preserve records.
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Boston drivers’ data left unsecured during Flock pilot due to vendor ‘error,’ city officials say
boston.com
Boston's 2025 annual surveillance report states that three days into a 45-camera Flock pilot, police found the nationwide data-sharing feature had been enabled by the vendor in error despite a contract barring sharing. BPD ordered it disabled and says it will not use Flock again. The report logged 15 watchlist requests, 12 approved, and no internal misuse complaints. More than 20 Massachusetts communities have ended or suspended Flock contracts.
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Toledo council to unveil plan to audit Flock camera system
13abc.com
Toledo City Council members plan to introduce legislation calling for an audit of the city's more than 100 Flock license plate reader cameras. Councilman Mac Driscoll wants the system paused during the review, citing resident concerns about data use, while Councilman John Hobbs III argues it should keep running absent proof of local misuse. No improper searches have been reported in Toledo or Lucas County.