// TECHCRUNCH — INTELLIGENZA ARTIFICIALE
At least 10 local governments have moved to drop Flock’s surveillance cameras since summer
At least 10 local governments and police departments have moved since this summer to curb, restrict, or end their use of Flock Safety technology as concerns about mass surveillance and data privacy continue to grow. The backlash is part of a broader pushback against the rapid adoption of advanced AI technology, including the data center buildout, facial recognition, and other uses of AI.
Flock, founded in 2017, sells surveillance software — like license plate readers, drones, and microphone-based edge-computing devices to pick up gunshots and other sounds — that can help solve crimes, such as finding missing people or stolen cars. More than 100,000 Flock cameras are in use nationwide.
But in the past three months, Monroe, Ohio; Newburgh, New York; Richmond, Virginia; Hopkinton, Massachusetts; New Bedford, Massachusetts; and Lansing, Michigan, have all moved to end their contracts with Flock. Meanwhile, police in East Bridgewater and Grafton, Massachusetts, also announced plans to stop using Flock cameras. Just this week, residents of League City, Texas, voted against their police department’s continued use of Flock’s license plate readers, and the cameras are now set to be removed.
The concerns range from privacy to how data is shared (and with whom) to procurement concerns.
In Asheville, North Carolina, police lost access to Flock after the city voted to terminate its contract in August, and the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office in Colorado announced in September that it would stop using Flock cameras. When asked for comment, the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office redirected TechCrunch to its press release, where Sheriff Joseph Roybal said that discontinuing the use of Flock was the right decision for the county.
“We have the tools, training, and experience to locate and apprehend criminals without relying on Flock cameras,” he said in the press release.
Tatiana Rice, a senior director for U.S. legislation at The Future of Privacy Forum, told TechCrunch that the backlash to Flock isn’t surprising and only further represents the “growing public skepticism toward technology.” Flock is a target because people can see the sensors and cameras as they drive along roads; data centers have also become physical embodiments of the resentment growing against emerging technology. “A camera at the end of your street is tangible in a way that everyday sharing and selling of personal data online is not,” Rice said.
At the state level this summer, for example, Florida barred license plate readers from state highways, while Texas paused state funding for Flock. The issues again range from data privacy concerns to misuse of the technology.
Misuse has been a real problem. In August, for example, an officer in Brentwood, Missouri was accused of using Flock cameras to stalk his ex-wife during their divorce. In September, an officer from East Texas was sentenced to prison for using Flock to stalk his ex-girlfriend and her family.
Another growing concern is how immigration officials have been able to access the technology. One case that captures the issue came in March, when Ithaca, New York, passed a resolution to terminate its contract with the Flock Group.