Flock License Plate Camera Privacy Concerns

Our Take

WOSU News out of Columbus is the latest local outlet to notice what we've been tracking for a while: regular people are waking up to the fact that a network of cameras is logging their movements, and they have questions nobody in city government seems eager to answer. Credit to WOSU for putting local voices and local officials on the record instead of just repeating Flock Safety's talking points.

This is how it starts everywhere. A city council approves a Flock contract with little public debate, cameras go up on utility poles and intersections, and then months later residents start asking who has access to the data, how long it's kept, and whether it's being shared with federal agencies or used for purposes well beyond the 'stolen car' pitch that got the contract approved in the first place. Columbus is now having that conversation in public, which is more than most cities ever get.

If you're in Ohio or anywhere else wondering whether these cameras are already watching your street, check our camera map to see what's been documented near you, and head to our take-action page for concrete steps to push back at the local level before the next contract renewal sails through unopposed.