Amid public backlash, surveillance tech company Flock announces platform changes

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Surveillance technology company Flock Safety, which provides automated license plate readers, has announced changes to its platform in response to privacy concerns and documented abuses by some law enforcement members. The company, a major provider of the technology, is one of the largest in the nation, with thousands of law enforcement agencies using its cameras to search and share data across jurisdictions.

The changes, set to take effect on January 1st, include mandatory audit tools to flag abnormal search behavior, which would lock out users pending an internal review. Flock has also shortened its standard data retention window from 30 days to seven days, preserving data longer for evidence tied to a case number. Law enforcement users will now need to enter a code from their records management system to tie each search to a specific case, a move supported by civil liberties advocates.

Additionally, customers will be able to decide which offense types outside agencies can search their data for, allowing them to block searches related to immigration enforcement. Critics have expressed skepticism about the changes, with the American Civil Liberties Union describing them as "retreads" of inadequate safety measures and a law professor calling the updates "window dressing" that doesn't address the fundamental issue of police officers deciding who and when to search.

Despite the criticism, the company maintains that these changes are a response to growing bipartisan anger about the cameras.