80Trust
Verified
🔍 Web Verified
Electronic Frontier FoundationonMastodon22d ago
Police in many cases are using Flock ALPR cameras to search not for cars, but for people. “Unfortunately, this ability to search cameras as though doing a search engine inquiry is increasingly common for surveillance cameras,” EFF’s Beryl Lipton told @404mediaco.
https://www.404media.co/how-cops-use-flock-to-track-people-not-cars/
Trust Metrics
85
82
70
78
Accuracy85%
Framing82%
Context70%
Tone78%
Analysis Summary
Police departments including LAPD have used Flock's FreeForm search feature to identify people by physical characteristics like tattoos, clothing, and race — not license plates — contradicting the system's original purpose as a vehicle tracking tool. LAPD suspended its Flock contract partly due to evidence the system was being used to conduct mass surveillance of individuals for unrelated investigations. This matters because it reveals how license plate camera networks can be repurposed for dragnet people-tracking, raising serious Fourth Amendment concerns about warrantless searches of innocent populations. Multiple jurisdictions have documented similar practices, suggesting this has become a standard police tactic rather than an isolated misuse.
Claims Analysis (2)
“Police in many cases are using Flock ALPR cameras to search not for cars, but for people.”
404 Media's investigation confirmed LAPD and other departments used Flock's FreeForm search to identify individuals by tattoos, clothing, and race — not license plates. LAPD suspended the program over these practices.
“The ability to search cameras as though doing a search engine inquiry is increasingly common for surveillance cameras.”
EFF's Beryl Lipton's characterization is accurate — Flock's FreeForm and similar ALPR systems do enable broad person-based searches. 'Increasingly common' is a fair assessment given multiple police departments have adopted these capabilities, though quantifying the trend would require additional data.
Was this analysis helpful?
Try ClearFeed free →