Ask Who Can Search Your Car
The short version: AI Safety Watch spotlights 404 Media's reporting on officers abusing Flock ALPR access to stalk people, raising the question: who's really watching the watchers?
Our Take
AI Safety Watch's rundown of the 404 Media investigation cuts to the heart of why ALPR networks are so dangerous: the technology doesn't just get misused by strangers hacking into a database, it gets misused by the very people who are supposed to have legitimate access. When cops are getting arrested for running plates to track an ex or a personal target, that's not a bug in the system, it's the predictable result of handing thousands of officers nationwide a searchable log of everywhere a car has been, with audit systems that too often only catch abuse after the fact.
Flock's pitch has always been that "audit trails" and department policies keep this in check. But an audit trail is cold comfort to someone who's already been stalked, and policy only matters if it's enforced before harm happens, not reviewed after a scandal breaks. Every camera added to this network is another node that can be queried by someone with a badge and a grudge, which is exactly why we track where these cameras are going up in the first place.
If you want to see how dense this surveillance net has gotten in your own town, check our camera map, and if you're ready to push back on unchecked ALPR deployment where you live, our take-action page has concrete steps. Credit to AI Safety Watch for keeping this story in front of people instead of letting it fade after one news cycle.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of AI Safety Watch, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.