Flock cameras remain operational in defiance of Governor DeSantis' order to remove them
The short version: Flock cameras reportedly stay up on Florida roads despite a gubernatorial removal order, exposing how little enforcement power exists once these systems are installed.
Our Take
Credit to Orwell Day for documenting what a lot of us have suspected for a while: once a surveillance network like Flock Safety gets bolted onto state right-of-ways, it doesn't just disappear because a governor says so. An order from Tallahassee is one thing. Pulling hardware out of the ground, auditing vendor contracts across dozens of counties, and actually verifying compliance is another. That gap between "policy" and "practice" is exactly where mass surveillance thrives.
This is the pattern we keep seeing nationwide — local police departments and private vendors treat ALPR deployment as a done deal, and once the cameras are up, oversight becomes an afterthought. Even when elected officials push back, there's no guarantee the systems actually come down, who's auditing the data retention, or whether the plate reads already collected get purged. "Remove the cameras" sounds simple until you realize enforcement depends on the same agencies that wanted them there in the first place.
If you're in Florida or anywhere else wondering what's still watching your commute, check our camera map to see what's been documented near you, and if you want to push back locally, our take-action page has concrete steps for pressuring your city council or county commission — because a state order alone clearly isn't enough.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of Orwell Day, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.