Flock of PR spin

Our Take

Newdle's new video digs into Flock Safety's latest "privacy" announcement, and the channel does a solid job pointing out what every ALPR watcher already suspects: a press release promising better safeguards isn't the same thing as a system that actually respects your Fourth Amendment rights. Flock has gotten very good at rolling out policy language right after bad press, and Newdle's breakdown is a good primer on how to read those announcements skeptically instead of taking them at face value.

Here's the thing that matters more than any PR statement: Flock cameras are still going up in neighborhoods across the country, still logging every plate that passes, and still feeding that data into a nationwide network that local police departments can query with almost no oversight. A new privacy policy doesn't delete the cameras already bolted to utility poles on your street, and it doesn't change the fact that this data can be shared, subpoenaed, or misused long after the headlines fade.

If you want to see how far this has spread in your own area, check out our camera map, and if you're ready to push back, our take-action page has concrete steps for raising this with your city council before the next contract renewal gets rubber-stamped. Credit to Newdle for keeping the spotlight on the gap between what Flock says and what Flock does.