August 21: Residents vandalize, oppose Flock license-plate cameras #Privacy #licenseplaterecognition
The short version: Factslane reports that residents in 36+ states are sabotaging Flock ALPR cameras, forcing policy tweaks and contract cancellations, but the surveillance dragnet keeps growing.
Our Take
Credit to Factslane for tracking just how widespread the backlash has gotten: camera vandalism in three dozen states isn't a fringe protest anymore, it's a pattern. When people start disabling hardware with their own hands, that's usually a sign the normal channels — city council meetings, public comment, records requests — aren't working fast enough to stop a surveillance system from being bolted onto every intersection in town.
Flock's response is telling. Trimming retention to seven days, requiring case codes for searches, making audit tools mandatory — these are the kinds of guardrails that should have existed before thousands of these cameras went up, not after public pressure and a few canceled contracts forced the company's hand. Longmont ditching Flock for another vendor isn't a privacy win either; swapping one ALPR network for another still means your plate gets logged and timestamped every time you drive past a pole.
The real fix isn't sabotage or picking a 'nicer' surveillance vendor — it's knowing what's actually watching your street and pushing your local government to rip it out. Check our camera map to see what's near you, and hit take action for ways to organize against it that don't require wire cutters.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of Factslane, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.