How much safer do Flock cameras make us?
The short version: Planet Money asks the right question—do Flock cameras actually make us safer—and lands on the same answer we do: the trade-off isn't worth it.
Our Take
Credit where it's due: Planet Money digging into Flock Safety's safety math is a good sign that the mainstream press is finally treating ALPR networks as a policy question worth scrutinizing, not just a shiny crime-fighting gadget cities buy on faith. When a national outlet with that kind of reach starts asking "how much safer, really?" it means the marketing pitch Flock sales reps give to city councils is starting to crack under basic scrutiny.
That's the whole game with this technology. Flock and departments that use it love to cite anecdotes about a recovered stolen car or a suspect caught, but they rarely offer the rigorous, independent numbers you'd want before signing a town up for permanent location tracking of every driver, every day. The "trade-off" the video's description flags is the one we hammer on constantly: a marginal, unproven bump in clearance rates bought with a database that logs where you go, who you visit, and how often—searchable by cops, sometimes shared across state lines, occasionally misused, and almost never subject to a public vote before installation.
If this video has you wondering whether your own town already has this trade-off baked in without anyone asking you, check our camera map to see what's nearby, and if you want to push back, our take-action page walks through how to get it on your city council's agenda.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of NPR's Planet Money, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.