Valley cities are suddenly very wary of Flock cameras
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Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
The nationwide blowback against automated license plate reader cameras made by Flock and similar companies has led a slew of Valley cities and police departments to scrutinize how they're using the technology.
Why it matters: Recent audits have revealed potential misuse of the Flock system, which allows police agencies to track the location of almost anyone. But it's unclear whether Valley cities will abandon their Flock cameras for good.
The big picture: Flock has more than 120,000 cameras across the country, the company tells Axios.
- Advocates say the cameras help quickly track down criminals, making cities safer.
- But opponents on both sides of the aisle say they're a form of constant surveillance that infringes on residents' civil liberties.
How it works: Flock and other automated license plate reader cameras are placed on streets and highways and use AI to capture and store information like car license plates, car make and other features.
- Flock in particular has previously allowed users to search a nationwide database that acts as a repository for information collected by its cameras across jurisdictions.
Zoom in: Last week brought a crescendo of Flock headlines in the Valley, with several local police departments flagging issues with their systems.
- Four Arizona cities — Goodyear, Surprise, Chandler and Apache Junction said they're looking into officers' use of the cameras. Officers in the last two — including an Apache Junction officer suspected of using the Flock system to track down his wife — resigned.
- Chandler and Surprise canceled their Flock contracts, although Surprise City Councilmember Johnny Melton said on social media that the city could resume using the technology when "better safeguards can be implemented."
- Tempe shut off the ability of other departments to search its Flock database, though it will keep its system operational.
Flashback: Other Arizona municipalities previously ended their contracts with the company, including Pinal County, Sedona, Flagstaff, Sierra Vista and South Tucson.
The latest: Flock said Thursday that it's improving its privacy, security and accountability features.
- It's making misuse detection mandatory for all customers, and cutting default data retention settings to one week. Some places held data for up to 30 days.
- Flock also will allow customers to further limit the extent to which other entities can search their specific network.
- The company tells Axios via email that the changes "come following a year of listening to customers, communities, and civil liberties groups and build on Flock's impact" in aiding about 1 million police investigations last year and helping find about 10,000 missing people.
The other side: In response to Thursday's announcement, DeFlock, a national organization that tracks and advocates against Flock cameras, posted on X: "No guardrails. No regulations. No 'only if they really need to' pinky promises. It's a 4th amendment violation. Full Stop. They are coming down."
- DeFlock also tracks when governments end or reject contracts or deactivate cameras, tallying 23 instances since July.
Between the lines: An effort to regulate how ALPRs are used died in the state Legislature earlier this year after Democrats and far-right lawmakers felt it didn't go far enough.
What we're watching: Whether Valley cities continue retreating from Flock, how Flock keeps responding to the growing pushback and whether state lawmakers again try to tackle the issue.