Flock Cameras Track More Than Your License Plate, And They're Spreading Fast
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Flock cameras track more than your license plate, and they're spreading fast
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Flock cameras track more than your license plate, and they're spreading fast
"You can't get a breath of fresh air ... without us knowing."
By Max Miller
June 28, 2026 9:30 am EST
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Thanks to the rise of AI, a new kind of surveillance camera has rapidly proliferated across the United States. Typically referred to as automated license plate readers, or ALPRs, they're most often mounted along roadways, where they log the movements of cars which pass through their field of vision. Though various companies offer them, the most well known come from Flock Security, and the company has consequently been a lightning rod for public opinion. Shocking exactly nobody, there has been widespread public backlash to cameras that track everyone, whether or not they've been suspected of a crime.
Although Flock cameras are often referred to as license plate readers, that's reductive. Reading license plates is their primary task, but they can be used to track just about anyone or anything. Even without a license plate, law enforcement officers can search for things such as, hypothetically, "green sedan with American flag bumper sticker," or, "pickup truck with paint scratches on left side and dirt bike in truck bed." Reducing Flock ALPRs to license plate readers is a bit like calling your own eyes "Engadget article readers" simply because that's what you're using them for at this particular moment. The company also offers AI surveillance cameras which do track individuals.
The issues with Flock Safety cameras are well documented: Flock has been plagued by security vulnerabilities, rampant misuse by law enforcement officers and AI malfunctions which land innocent people in trouble with the law. And once Flock cameras take root in a city, weeding them out can be nearly impossible. There are now over 100,000 ALPRs installed nationwide, with the vast majority coming from Flock.
How do Flock cameras work, and what do they do?
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Flock Security cameras are, like most smart devices, small computers. They run a modified version of Android and wirelessly transmit footage to a database, where it is cataloged using AI for searched natural language searches by anyone with access to the system. Flock contracts with cities, towns, neighborhoods and businesses.
In addition to Flock's infamous ALPRs, the company also offers AI security cameras, mobile security trailers, and — just in case you're a creep looking to point an AI camera into someone's backyard — quadcopter drones. All of them operate on the same principles. Just type what you're looking for, and the system will show footage of anything it thinks matches your description. This makes AI powered cameras like Flock's distinct from traditional surveillance or traffic cams, which require someone to manually look over footage in order to find a specific vehicle or individual.
The Flock network can be restricted to a contracted area, but many departments join a nationwide network. As the ACLU of Massachusetts pointed out, police as far away from the state as Texas can search its Flock footage. While Flock does not have a direct contract with federal law enforcement agencies, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other Homeland Security agencies are often granted access to the system through data sharing programs with local police departments (a practice which began before Flock arrived on the scene). In Denver, the ACLU of Colorado obtained logs showing that local police had conducted over 1,400 searches on ICE's behalf as of August.
That's not to say the cameras never prove useful for crime-solving. Flock has helped to solve at least one murder case and to take down a vehicle smash-and-grab operation. But its AI-enhanced capabilities track everyone, innocent or not.
Flock cameras have been riddled with security flaws
Benn Jordan/YouTube
Flock vehemently insists that its cameras are secure. The truth is that Flock cannot seem to go very long without vulnerabilities becoming exposed. Many of the most critical exploits have been discovered by Benn Jordan, a musician and YouTuber with no formal background in cybersecurity research.
In December 2025, Jordan found that at least 70 Flock Safety cameras were exposed to the Internet and could be accessed through a commercial search engine. No password was required to view live footage of children at parks, couples having intimate arguments, and other moments people did not know were surveilled. Many exposed cameras belonged to Flock's Condor cameras which track people, not vehicles. Jordan was even able to record Flock's flippant response to his previous investigations onto a Flock Condor camera and then download the footage to include in his video.
That...