Police Departments Drop Flock Safety Over Privacy and Security

Police departments in the Philadelphia metropolitan area and New Jersey are removing automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras provided by Flock Safety. The Abington Township and Cherry Hill police departments are terminating their contracts, with Abington citing data security breaches and a desire for greater data control through a move to competitor Axon. In Cherry Hill, officials are removing 10 cameras as their contract expires.

Similar scrutiny is occurring in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, where the town council is reviewing the use of 22 cameras. While the technology contributed to 40 arrests this year, officials are weighing those results against concerns that the system creates a surveillance network capable of tracking a citizen's pattern of life.

Privacy advocates, including the ACLU of Pennsylvania, are urging lawmakers to implement a total ban on the technology. Governor Josh Shapiro has indicated he would welcome bipartisan legislation to limit or ban ALPR cameras. In response, Flock Safety maintains that its technology is an essential public safety tool and has introduced new safeguards that require officers to document the specific reasons for every search.