Overview
- Flock Safety announced policy and product changes on Saturday, August 15, 2026, that shorten its recommended plate‑data retention from 30 days to seven days and add an "evidence mode" that lets investigators lock specific hits.
- The company said it will require all law enforcement customers to adopt stronger audit tools with automatic lockouts for abnormal user behavior and that it commissioned an independent security review by Bishop Fox.
- Independent audits and reporting have shown high error rates and misuse of the system, including a Roseville police finding that misreads occurred in about 71% of checks for a documented period and at least one officer arrested for repeated improper searches.
- Dozens of local governments have paused or ended contracts, activists built a FOIA‑based "Have I Been Flocked" database of agency audit logs, and community groups are holding public meetings to demand greater control over camera use.
- Police departments defend the technology’s value, with Fairfax County saying plate readers helped recover hundreds of stolen cars, firearms and missing people, but lawmakers, advocates and prosecutors continue to press for warrants, state limits or binding oversight.