404 Media has uncovered that Border Patrol operates secretive 'Predictive Intelligence Targeting Teams' (PITT) that analyze Americans' financial records and other personal data to flag individuals for local police to stop, even without suspicion of a specific crime. In one documented case, a PITT's analysis of a Montana driver's finances led local police to pull him over on a pretextual charge of an obstructed license plate, resulting in a DUI arrest. PITT units have been identified operating in Washington's Spokane Sector and Texas's Laredo Sector, expanding on prior reporting about Border Patrol's use of automatic license plate readers for similar predictive targeting.
404media.co
· 2026-09-08
Colby Williams, 25, was arrested in Georgia on multiple felony charges including arson and criminal damage to property after police say he set fire to three Flock automated license plate readers, melting at least one down to slag. A nearby fourth camera was found riddled with bullet holes, and one melted pole bore a 'DeFlock' sticker. Investigators identified Williams partly through footage from the very cameras he allegedly destroyed.
futurism.com
· 2026-09-07
404 Media reported that surveillance firm Flock ran a webinar last year instructing law enforcement on monitoring the 'No Kings' anti-Trump protests, as well as ordinary gatherings like parades and fireworks shows. In the session, Flock's Caity Peak demonstrated FlockOS, a platform merging license plate readers, drones, gunshot sensors, 911 data and outside camera feeds into one dashboard, using Denver's protest response as a live example.
yro.slashdot.org
· 2026-09-06
Napoleon Jones, a Navy veteran, was filming a traffic stop from a private parking lot in Sussex, Wisconsin, when a Waukesha County deputy turned around and detained him instead, later pulling him from his car and arresting him for 'resisting and obstructing.' Jones was released after five hours with no charges, and an internal memo confirmed the stop was illegal, but records show his vehicle was subsequently searched via Flock license-plate-reading cameras more than 100 times.
reason.com
· 2026-09-05
Following Florida Governor Ron DeSantis's move to remove Flock license plate readers from state roads, sheriff's offices in several Florida counties followed suit. Dallas police shut down over 300 Flock cameras after Governor Greg Abbott cut state funding, while a dozen Wisconsin agencies suspended their contracts, joining cities like Appleton, Oshkosh and Kenosha that had already dropped Flock.
yro.slashdot.org
· 2026-09-05
Florida's Department of Transportation issued a memo revoking permits for automatic license plate readers, including Flock Safety cameras, on state-controlled roads. Law enforcement agencies have 30 days from August 31 to remove the devices, and the agency says it will stop approving new permit requests going forward.
engadget.com
· 2026-09-04
Jevon Martinez filmed himself dismantling automatic license plate reader towers that Bernalillo County had left standing despite cancelling its contract with surveillance company Flock earlier this year. He then drove a truck bed full of the dismantled equipment to the Bernalillo County Sheriff's Department, framing it as returning the devices, and was arrested there at gunpoint by deputies in tactical gear.
futurism.com
· 2026-09-03
As communities destroy Flock's automatic license plate readers over privacy concerns, some police departments switching to Axon are worried its similar-looking cameras will become the next target. In a leaked webinar, Axon CEO Rick Smith confirmed the company is exploring shape changes to its ALPRs after customer requests, alongside plans to mount cameras on streetlights and add explanatory signage.
techspot.com
· 2026-09-02
Florida's Department of Transportation announced it will stop using license plate reading cameras like Flock's on state highways, giving agencies 30 days to remove them, citing misuse and privacy concerns. This follows Texas's decision last week to halt state funding for Flock cameras after a Lufkin police officer was indicted on 100 felony counts for allegedly misusing the database to track people without authorization.
techcrunch.com
· 2026-09-01
Anti-surveillance group Secure Justice reports that 214 local governments have cancelled or declined to renew contracts with license-plate-reading company Flock since 2021, with cancellations quadrupling from July to August 2025 alone. Because Flock's value depends on a networked web of cameras shared across jurisdictions, losing contracts in one town can trigger cancellations in neighboring ones, compounding the losses even as Flock insists new signups still outpace cancellations.
futurism.com
· 2026-09-01
Florida's Department of Transportation issued a memo revoking permits for all automated license plate readers, including those made by Flock, installed on state highways. The agency says operators have 30 days to remove the devices, and it will no longer approve new placement requests on state roadways.
theverge.com
· 2026-09-01
A Mother Jones investigation found 19 police agencies in ten states spent nearly $1 million of opioid settlement money on automatic license plate readers from companies like Flock and Axon. The funds were originally allocated to help communities devastated by the opioid crisis, but state distribution agencies instead routed portions to police departments, which pitched surveillance tech as a crime-fighting tool.
futurism.com
· 2026-08-30
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