As Flock Safety's license plate readers and AI surveillance tools expand across the US, a database maintained by the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the University of Nevada, Reno's journalism school is being highlighted as the most reliable way to check whether cameras have appeared nearby. The Atlas of Surveillance compiles public records, news coverage and community tips to map where police departments and other agencies have adopted such technology. The tool comes amid growing scrutiny of Flock, including Boston's decision to drop the cameras and Los Angeles suspending its contract.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott has frozen further state spending on Flock's AI-powered license plate cameras, a decision made shortly before a Texas Tribune investigation exposed that the state had already spent over $30 million on the technology. That funding came largely from a $1 fee added to insurance policies, ostensibly to combat catalytic converter theft.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation and University of Nevada, Reno maintain a free, searchable database called Atlas of Surveillance that maps police surveillance technology nationwide, including Flock Safety cameras, drones and facial-recognition systems. The tool compiles public records, news reports and community submissions, giving residents a way to check whether local police or private groups have deployed such devices near them.
German artist Simon Weckert created an intentionally hideous Hawaiian shirt covered in clashing pink, orange and green blobs designed to confuse AI-powered surveillance cameras. Using an AI-driven trial-and-error process called an adversarial loop, he crafted a pattern that disrupts the body's visual outline so detection algorithms can't recognize a human figure. Weckert previously gained attention in 2020 for towing a wagon of smartphones through Berlin to fake a traffic jam on Google Maps.
Designer Simon Weckert created a garishly patterned Hawaiian shirt intended to make wearers invisible to AI-powered surveillance systems. The pink, orange and green shapes are engineered to disrupt an algorithm's ability to recognize a human outline, effectively blinding detection software while appearing as an eye-catching print to people. Weckert used an AI-driven trial-and-error process, called an adversarial loop, to develop the disruptive pattern.
At a San Diego City Council budget meeting, DJ and activist Anthony Ralphs appeared as Darth Vader to satirize the city's renewed contract with surveillance firm Flock Safety, delivering a mock endorsement praising the technology's ability to track 'rebel scum.' The stunt, filmed and shared online, went viral across TikTok and Instagram, reaching millions of viewers. Ralphs, who has spent roughly a year opposing the San Diego Police Department's use of Flock's tools, later revealed his identity behind the mask to take credit for the performance.
Flock Safety's network of AI-powered surveillance cameras has expanded rapidly across US cities and towns, but communities from both political sides are now organizing against it. Critics cite privacy concerns, lack of oversight, and fears about how police and other agencies use the collected data.
Flock Safety CEO Garrett Langley used a Fox News interview to urge critics to find a middle ground between privacy and public safety, as opposition to his company's AI camera network intensifies. The remarks follow a Washington Post investigation that uncovered dozens of cases of police misusing Flock's surveillance tools, including to track women, prompting Langley to issue a public apology earlier this month.
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