Flock Safety, a company that deploys license plate-reading cameras, has suspended operations with federal agencies due to concerns over data usage, especially in Illinois. The company’s cameras capture billions of license plate photos monthly, with local agencies controlling the data and responding to law enforcement inquiries. Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias raised concerns after discovering Customs and Border Protection accessed Illinois data, potentially violating a state law restricting data sharing on abortion and immigration. As a result, Flock Safety has revised its system to clearly identify federal inquiries and limit search capabilities.
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Documents reveal that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) indirectly accessed Flock Safety’s extensive network of AI-powered license plate readers through state and local law enforcement requests. Over 4,000 searches citing immigration-related reasons were conducted across numerous states, despite Illinois law and Flock Safety’s policies prohibiting such use. This access occurred via Flock Safety’s “National Lookup” tool, raising concerns about privacy and oversight despite the company’s claim of local data control. The practice highlights the potential for circumventing legal restrictions on immigration enforcement through collaborations with local agencies.
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US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has accessed license plate reader data from Westchester County, New York, despite the county’s sanctuary city laws limiting cooperation with federal immigration authorities. This data, collected from a network of hundreds of cameras, provides ICE with information on individuals’ movements, potentially undermining sanctuary city protections. The sharing of this data with ICE, and other federal agencies like the FBI and DEA, creates a vast surveillance network across the US, raising concerns about privacy violations and the potential for widespread tracking of individuals. Experts argue this mass surveillance contradicts the spirit of sanctuary city policies and raises serious civil liberty concerns.
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John Q. Hosedrinker