Tempe turns off Flock cameras, ends contract with company.
The short version: Tempe reportedly cut ties with Flock Safety and shut down its ALPR cameras, proof that public pressure can roll back license plate surveillance once communities push back.
Our Take
Salem News Channel is reporting that Tempe, Arizona has pulled the plug on its Flock Safety contract and powered down the city's automated license plate readers. We haven't independently verified every detail of the deal's collapse, but the headline itself is significant: a city government deciding that a network of cameras logging every car that passes isn't worth keeping.
This matters because the Flock sales pitch always sounds the same — it's just for solving crime, nothing to worry about. What rarely gets mentioned up front is the retention, the data-sharing agreements with other agencies, and the fact that a presence that starts as "public safety" quietly becomes a permanent record of where everyone drives, when, and how often. When a city like Tempe walks it back, it's a reminder that these contracts aren't permanent fixtures — they're decisions made by elected officials who can be pressured to reverse course.
Credit to Salem News Channel for putting this story in front of viewers. If you want to see whether Flock or similar ALPR systems are active near you, check our camera map, and if you'd rather your town follow Tempe's lead than expand surveillance, our take-action page has steps for making your voice heard at the next city council meeting.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of Salem News Channel, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.