Leaked Flock Guide Shows How It Teaches Cops to Promote Its Tech
A leaked guide reveals that surveillance company Flock instructs police departments on how to manipulate public perception and bypass community opposition to license plate reader technology. The handbook advises officials to control the narrative early and avoid debating the concept of mass surveillance during public meetings.
Why it matters
This highlights growing concerns regarding the ethics of corporate-government partnerships in surveillance and the potential erosion of democratic oversight in public safety policy.
404 Media has obtained a coaching guide that Flock surveillance gives to police about “how to speak to city councils about public safety technology.” The handbook highlights how Flock and police team up to convince cities to buy and keep its automated license plate reader technology, even when there is widespread public opposition to it, and encourages police to “own the narrative before someone else does” by championing the technology before citizens can oppose it during public comment periods.
The PDF guide notes that the general public and cities now “increasingly expect transparency, oversight, and accountability alongside public safety outcomes,” and tells police to not argue with people who believe that Flock’s license plate readers are “mass surveillance.”
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