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Tech News
Emory University has removed Flock Safety's automated license-plate-reading cameras from campus, with a spokesperson saying the move keeps safety infrastructure under the institution's own control. The decision follows a broader student-led 'de-flock' movement questioning the use of Flock's surveillance technology at colleges.
Flock Safety CEO Garrett Langley publicly defended his company's automated license-plate reader technology after facing national backlash over privacy and abuse concerns. He acknowledged the system is 'far from perfect' but argued it helps police departments address staffing shortages and improve public safety, claiming millions of people have benefited from it.
Flock founder and CEO Garrett Langley publicly defended his company's license-plate camera and surveillance systems at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, arguing that halting the technology's expansion would hinder crime accountability. He addressed criticism that has led some cities to cancel contracts and the company to lay off staff, but largely responded with anecdotes from police chiefs rather than direct solutions to privacy concerns.
Flock CEO Garrett Langley told TechCrunch Disrupt that the company's Gunshot Detection microphones pick up 'just gunshots,' but Flock's website describes the system as also detecting street takeovers, severe crashes, fireworks and sideshows. The product previously drew criticism for listening for 'screaming,' which Flock relabeled as 'sounds of human distress' before later removing that distress-detection capability for customers who tested it.
Ron Deibert of Citizen Lab has accused the US government of advancing widespread surveillance initiatives. He also criticized some technology executives for their willingness to support these efforts. The remarks highlight concerns over privacy and government overreach in digital spaces.
British Transport Police ran an 18-deployment trial of live facial recognition across major London railway stations from February to July, scanning over 500,000 faces at a cost exceeding £320,000 and nearly 100 officer-hours. The trial produced a single watchlist alert, which proved to be a false match, and no arrests. BTP has since extended the trial by four months into London Underground stations, reporting three confirmed alerts of individuals complying with court-imposed conditions.
Flock Safety announced changes to its automated license-plate-reading system after facing scrutiny from lawmakers in Congress. The company shortened its default data-retention period from 30 days to seven, introduced standardized categories for why searches are conducted, and will now require officers to enter case numbers before running a search.
An investigation by MIT Technology Review documents hundreds of migrant deaths in areas monitored by the government's decades-long, multibillion-dollar network of border surveillance towers, including newer AI-equipped installations meant to automatically detect people crossing. In many cases, the towers neither led to rescue nor apprehension of those who later died in the surrounding terrain. The findings were discussed in a roundtable featuring editor in chief Mat Honan with reporters James O'Donnell and Eileen Guo.
Flock Safety introduced a voluntary severance program on Friday, described internally as the most generous package it has offered, aiming to shrink its roughly 1,500-person workforce. Wired reports the company anticipates strong interest and plans to approve buyouts for most who apply, likely averting the need for outright layoffs.
Flock Safety launched a voluntary severance program on Friday, giving employees until October 2 to decide whether to leave with a package the company called generous. Insiders expect a large share of its roughly 1,500 workers to apply, as the surveillance firm faces mounting customer losses and public criticism over its network of license plate cameras.
WIRED found that Flock, whose license plate readers are used by police nationwide, has quietly stopped specifying where its cameras are manufactured in recent marketing materials, despite years of touting domestic production. A US manufacturer that once listed Flock as a client removed the reference from its website amid growing public backlash against the company's surveillance technology.
Lindsey Brooke Isaacs, 23, spent nearly two weeks jailed in Florida on eight felony charges, including three counts of vehicular homicide, after investigators tied her Dodge Durango to a fatal hit-and-run using Flock Safety's automatic license plate reader network. The case relied heavily on a single ALPR sighting placing her vehicle miles from the crash scene, despite evidence including witness accounts and vehicle residue pointing to a maroon vehicle, not matching her car's actual details.