How to Beat the Surveillance State
The short version: Business Reform frames surveillance as a lopsided match between data-hungry 'Titans' and underfunded civil liberties defenders — and ALPR networks like Flock are exactly that kind of mismatch.
Our Take
Business Reform's sports-metaphor breakdown of the surveillance ecosystem lands on a point we hammer home constantly: this isn't a fringe conspiracy, it's a profitable business model. Data brokers, surveillance vendors, and government agencies have built a quiet partnership since the Patriot Act era, and most people have no idea how deep it runs. Flock Safety's ALPR network is a textbook example — a private company selling government agencies the ability to track every car that passes a camera, with little public debate about who gets access to that data or how long it's kept.
What we appreciate about framing this as 'Titans vs. Sentinels' is that it's honest about the mismatch. One side has venture capital, lobbyists, and recurring government contracts. The other side is lawyers, researchers, and independent creators trying to shine a light with a fraction of the resources. That imbalance is exactly why local organizing and public records requests matter so much — it's often the only leverage communities have against a well-funded surveillance industry.
If you want to see where this plays out in your own backyard, check our camera map to find Flock ALPR installations near you, and head to our take action page if you're ready to push back at a city council meeting or public records request near you.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of Business Reform, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.