Flock Cameras: Forced Privacy Audits for Law Enforcement

Flock Safety, which operates a network of cameras used by law enforcement for extensive license plate scanning, has announced new mandatory safety measures. CEO Garrett Langley revealed that law enforcement agencies must now activate features designed to audit officer usage of the system, following past reports of misuse, including stalking.

These new guardrails include a mandatory activation of the Audit Assistance feature by the end of the year. This feature flags 'abnormal activity' for review, with automatic suspension pending investigation. Previously, this was a voluntary feature, with only about a third of customers enabling it.

The company is also refining data sharing between agencies, allowing them to restrict access to license plate scans for specific offenses rather than providing blanket access. This addresses concerns that the system has been used to target individuals, including immigrants and those seeking abortions, potentially violating state laws.

Furthermore, Flock Safety is reducing the default retention period for license plate scans from 30 days to seven days. While agencies can request longer retention for specific investigations, this change aims to limit the scope of surveillance data.

These measures come amid growing public scrutiny and citizen action against Flock cameras, with over 80 cities considering or dropping contracts. Privacy experts, however, remain skeptical, questioning the effectiveness of these new features in truly protecting privacy against widespread surveillance.