Can an Infrared Filter Hide Your License Plate from Flock?
The short version: A YouTuber tests infrared filters against Flock ALPR cameras, and the results are a reminder that DIY plate-hiding tricks are a shaky defense against mass surveillance.
Our Take
Credit to FungusAmoungUs for actually putting a hardware fix to the test instead of just speculating. The infrared filter trick is one of those ideas that circulates endlessly in privacy forums, and it's genuinely useful to see someone run it against real Flock-style camera setups rather than leave it as a rumor. That said, we'd caution readers against treating any single gadget as a silver bullet. ALPR vendors iterate fast, and a workaround that defeats one camera generation can be patched or rendered obsolete in the next firmware push. Flock and its competitors have every incentive to close these gaps once they go viral.
The deeper issue this video surfaces isn't really about infrared light at all — it's about the fact that ordinary drivers feel compelled to experiment with filters and sprays just to retain a shred of anonymity on public roads. That's a sign the surveillance dragnet has gotten out of hand, not a sign that citizens have found a clever loophole. These cameras log your movements whether you're suspected of anything or not, and that data gets stored, shared, and sometimes misused long after the fact.
If you want to see how saturated your own neighborhood is with these devices, check our camera map, and if you'd rather push back on the policy side instead of relying on gadgets, our take-action page has concrete steps for getting involved locally.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of FungusAmoungUs, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.