Texas stops issuing permits for Flock cameras along state roads

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has stopped issuing permits for Flock cameras and other automated license plate readers to be installed along state roads, at the direction of Republican Governor Greg Abbott. This pause does not affect the nearly 900 cameras already installed along state rights-of-way, according to The Guardian US.

The move comes amid growing concerns and protests over surveillance technology, with some residents using unconventional methods to express their opinions. For example, a man dressed as Darth Vader satirically endorsed Flock cameras at a San Diego public safety meeting in August, according to Business Insider.

Flock Safety, the company behind the cameras, has deployed around 120,000 license plate readers, Business Insider reports. The Texas Department of Public Safety operates over 900 of these cameras along state rights-of-way, which will continue to function unaffected by the permit pause.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Guardian US, Business Insider — 2 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.