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In brief: Security cameras like those used by Flock in over 6,000 US communities have become increasingly controversial over concerns about privacy and government surveillance. Recent reports suggest that authorities are acutely aware of the mounting backlash and are obfuscating their use of the cameras in response.
A police usage policy for automatic license plate readers (ALPRs), recently obtained by 404 Media, provides an explicit example of how police departments avoid revealing when they use the AI-powered surveillance tools. Evidence suggests that authorities across the US only admit to using the cameras when absolutely necessary.
Flock cameras and other ALPRs are designed to feed license plates from passing vehicles into a searchable cloud database, which alerts officers to plates associated with serious crimes. Authorities have used them to track suspects' movements, but pushback is mounting for various reasons.
