Debate over Flock camera installations grow across Central Texas

Our Take

KCEN News out of Waco puts a local lens on a debate playing out in thousands of towns nationwide: city councils get a slick sales pitch about solving crime, residents start asking questions, and suddenly everyone's arguing about cameras nobody remembers approving. Credit to the station for actually airing the pushback instead of just running a Flock Safety press release with a badge in front of it.

But "crime-solving vs. privacy" is a false binary that lets the real issue slide. These aren't doorbell cams. Flock's ALPR network logs every plate that passes, builds a searchable travel history on anyone who drives through town, and shares that data across a growing web of agencies with little independent oversight. The debate shouldn't be whether cameras are good or bad in the abstract — it's whether any city council has the right to sign up for permanent location tracking of its residents without a real public vote and real audit trail.

Central Texas isn't unique, which is exactly the point. Check our map to see what's already watching your own commute, and if your town is next up for a Flock contract, our take-action guide has what you need to show up to that council meeting informed instead of outnumbered.