Overview
- A U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing on Sept. 23 examined Flock’s fleet of more than 120,000 automated license‑plate readers and testimony showed the system can reconstruct vehicle movements from billions of scans.
- Prosecutors charged five Indianapolis police officers for using the system to track people not suspected of crimes and one officer faces stalking counts after investigators found searches tied to personal relationships.
- Dozens to hundreds of cities and counties have paused, ended, or reworked contracts with Flock and some officials are ordering cameras removed or covered while they review data controls and audit trails.
- Security researchers told senators they found exposed photos, license‑plate logs, API keys and passwords that allowed unauthorized access or changes to camera systems, and vendors have been urged to accept independent audits.
- Federal and state lawmakers are drafting rules to require warrants for historical location searches, set short retention windows, force searchable audit logs tied to case numbers, and condition grants on privacy safeguards.