Flock boss admits surveillance firm took too long to act over police abuse
US police officers have quit after using licence plate-reading cameras to track romantic partners.
Flock, a US-based surveillance firm, is implementing new measures to prevent police misuse of its technology, a founder admits that this should have been done earlier. The company's cameras, license plate readers, and drones have been used by police to track romantic partners, strangers, and even individuals who had undergone abortions, leading to public outrage.
Police have quit or been fired for abusing the Flock technology, with at least 50 cities cutting ties with the company this year due to backlash. However, 16 cities have returned to Flock in the past three months.
Flock's CEO, Garrett Langley, acknowledged that the company took too long to address police abuse concerns. In response, Langley announced that the company will reduce the data retention period from 30 days to seven days, and will automatically flag abnormal searches and uses. He also stated that police officers must have an active case number to search Flock's data.
Langley admitted that he resisted the idea of taking a stronger stance on data privacy initially, but has now come to agree with groups like the American Civil Liberties Union and Electronic Frontier Foundation.
Cooper Quintin of the Electronic Frontier Foundation described Flock's new changes as piecemeal, voluntary, and reversible updates that fall short of meaningful privacy protection. Langley emphasized that the company is strengthening its safeguards while pitching its products as crucial for combating crime and improving policing in the US. He acknowledged that Flock has been misused by some police officers, but argued that it is easier to blame the company rather than address individual misconduct.
Written by urgent.news from BBC Technology's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
