City of Appleton to stop using Flock cameras
The short version: Appleton, Wisconsin is pulling the plug on its Flock Safety cameras, proof that local pushback can actually roll back ALPR surveillance once it's installed.
Our Take
Credit to WBAY TV-2 in Green Bay for reporting that Appleton is walking away from Flock Safety cameras. This is the story we don't hear often enough: a city that said yes to automated license plate readers, then said no. Departments and city councils love to frame these systems as a quiet, uncontroversial tool for catching bad guys. Appleton's reversal suggests that once residents actually learn how these networks track everyone's movements, regardless of suspicion, the political calculus changes.
We don't yet know the full reasoning behind Appleton's decision, and we're not going to speculate on specifics the report didn't give us. But the pattern is familiar: a rollout, some public scrutiny, and then an exit once the cost-benefit math on mass surveillance infrastructure stops adding up. Every city that reconsiders is a data point for the next city council getting a sales pitch from Flock.
If you live somewhere still running these cameras, don't wait for your local news to break the story. Check our map to see what's already watching your streets, and use our take-action guide to push your own city toward the exit Appleton just took.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of WBAY TV-2 | Green Bay, WI, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.