ONE BIG THING: WHAT THE FLOCK IS GOING ON WITH MASS SURVEILLANCE IN LA?
What Happened?
Last Friday, LAPD announced it would end its contract with Flock Safety, the company that operates hundreds of automated license plate reader (ALPR) surveillance cameras across Los Angeles, and thousands more nationwide.
Given growing concerns over privacy, transparency, and confirmed reports that Flock data can be shared with ICE, many Angelenos welcomed the news.
But just four days later, at Tuesday's Board of Police Commissioners meeting, we learned that wasn't actually the case. LAPD isn't walking away from Flock — it's negotiating a new contract.
Why it Matters
From sharing data with ICE, to Flock cameras being used to monitor protest activity, to states using this technology to help prosecute women seeking abortions, concerns about Flock extend far beyond basic privacy safeguards.
But even setting aside the civil liberties concerns, recent reports raise serious questions about the efficacy of automatic license plate reader (ALPR) usage more generally.
A new 98-page report from the LAPD Inspector General found that while ALPR alerts helped recover 337 stolen vehicles, it also issued at least 161 alerts for vehicles that turned out not to be stolen. That can lead to situations where officers believe they're approaching a potentially dangerous suspect when they're actually interacting with a law-abiding resident. In circumstances where split-second decisions matter, false positives carry real consequences.
What’s Next?
On Tuesday, the Board of Police Commissioners voted that any new ALPR contract with Flock or another company needs to have an opportunity for public input and to be voted on by the Police Commission. That means the residents will have the opportunity to make their voices heard before the city signs a new surveillance contract with Flock.
Stay tuned in the coming weeks for updates once we hear more.
One More Quick Hit!
- CicLAvia Meets the World Cup Final
CicLAvia: Meet the Hollywoods is TOMORROW (Sunday, July 19)! 🚲🚶🏾🛼
And with Spain vs Argentina kicking off at 12pm, we brought a big LED screen to Hollywood/Highland for one last FREE community watch party – this time in the middle of 6.1 miles of car-free streets.
Walk, bike, or roll on over to watch the game and come say hi to us along the route!