More cameras, more questions: Is Florida's Flock network security or surveillance?

Our Take

CBS 12's WPEC did what local news should do: point a camera at the cameras. Those unassuming black boxes on poles aren't just sitting there for decoration — they're building a searchable record of where you drove, when, and how often, all without a warrant or, in most towns, any real public conversation about whether residents actually want this. "Quietly recording" is the operative phrase in their report, and it's exactly the problem. Flock's expansion rarely comes with a ballot measure or a town hall — it comes with a vendor contract and a press release about public safety.

The segment's framing — security versus surveillance — is the right question, but it's a false binary in practice. These systems can do both at once, and that's precisely why oversight matters. A network that can help find a stolen car can just as easily be queried to track an ex-partner, a protester, or a journalist, and Flock's own audit logs have repeatedly shown that happening elsewhere in the country. South Florida isn't immune just because the cameras are new there.

If you live in the area and want to see how dense this network already is, check our camera map before assuming it's just a few poles downtown. And if you'd rather not wait for your city council to stumble into this conversation, our take-action page has the tools to get ahead of it — public records requests, model ordinances, and talking points that actually work at a council meeting.