Flock is tightening its rules in response to a growing surveillance backlash
Police-tech company Flock is implementing new mandatory search requirements and auditing tools to address concerns regarding officer abuse of its license plate reader network. Despite these changes, critics argue that the lack of verification for case numbers leaves significant loopholes for potential misuse.
Why it matters
As surveillance technology becomes ubiquitous in law enforcement, the balance between public safety and individual privacy remains a critical point of contention in civil liberties.
The company is imposing new guardrails on its police tech after reports that officers are abusing it and cities are dropping contracts. But the changes leave glaring loopholes.
The police-tech giant Flock is announcing today that it will change officers’ access to its nationwide network of license plate readers, in an apparent effort to quell a growing backlash and win back contracts lost amid concerns about mass surveillance and police abuse.
Several changes aim directly at a problem that has made recent headlines: officers abusing Flock’s technology to stalk and harass current or former romantic partners. Flock’s 120,000 cameras form a nationwide network that police departments can use, giving officers access to an enormous pool of searchable location data. A recent Washington Post investigation found 46 cases in which officers were accused of using Flock's cameras for unauthorized purposes like stalking.
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