30 US Cities Cancel Flock Safety Surveillance Contracts

At least 30 U.S. localities, including Flagstaff, Arizona; Cambridge, Massachusetts; Eugene, Oregon; and Santa Cruz, California, have deactivated automatic license plate readers or canceled contracts with Flock Safety since early 2025. Local leaders and residents cited privacy concerns and fears that surveillance data is being weaponized by the federal government's immigration enforcement crackdown under the Trump administration.

The controversy intensified after CEO Garrett Langley admitted the company operated pilot programs with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security Investigations, contradicting his previous denials of federal contracts. While the company claims customers have sole authority over data sharing, audits suggest some local police departments performed searches for federal agencies using terms like "ICE" or "immigration."

In response, Flock Safety introduced keyword filters and dropdown menus to restrict prohibited searches, though many officials found these measures insufficient. In Santa Cruz, Councilmember Susie O'Hara cited the killing of Renee Macklin Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis as a primary catalyst for removing the technology. Meanwhile, the police chief in Staunton, Virginia, terminated his city's contract and criticized Langley for characterizing privacy activists as being under "coordinated attack."

Flock Safety maintains that its growth continues to outpace the number of canceled contracts across its network of over 5,000 law enforcement agencies.