Flock Safety is making changes in the wake of public backlash and media reports scrutinizing how its cameras are being used to surveil American drivers.
Flock's move to tighten its privacy and accountability safeguards, including new requirements for law enforcement, highlights the pressure the surveillance company faces over concerns that its camera network could be misused.
In a Thursday blog post, CEO Garrett Langley outlined changes that "came from listening," including shortening the recommended default retention period for license plate data from 30 to 7 days, though the company said existing customers can keep their "current, democratically approved retention periods."
The company will also require law enforcement customers to use a tool designed to flag potentially improper searches and, by the end of the year, require case codes for searches.
"For us, this is an evolution, it's another chapter in a long book for a company that's trying to build a safer America," Langely said in a video sent to Business Insider. "I think we're at a time right now, as a society, where, even outside of public safety, we're asking the question, 'Where do private businesses have responsibility and an obligation to go above and beyond legislation?'"
Flock's cameras use machine learning to capture vehicle license numbers and letters, along with features such as dents, models, bumper stickers, and color. They're typically mounted atop street signs, traffic lights, and utility poles.
The Atlanta-based startup, which was recently valued at $8.4 billion, said it has deployed cameras in over 6,000 communities across the United States.
Law enforcement is increasingly relying on Flock cameras to track down vehicles and locate crime suspects. However, backlash is bubbling among Americans over privacy concerns, data sharing with federal officials, and potential misuse of the cameras. Dozens of communities have canceled, paused, or suspended contracts as a result.
Business Insider has reported on cases in which misreads by Flock's automated license plate readers, or a lack of verification by officers, resulted in innocent people being stopped at gunpoint or detained in jail, among other outcomes. Business Insider also reported that in one California town, Flock misread license plates in 71% of the alerts it sent to police.
On August 2, The Washington Post reported that at least 50 law-enforcement officers had been charged with or accused of misusing license-plate-reader systems. Flock cameras were used in 46 of those cases.
Flock alluded to multiple arrests of law enforcement officers in connection with its systems in its Thursday blog post.
"In recent weeks, those reviews have been associated with arrests of several law enforcement officers who allegedly abused the system," the company wrote.
While Flock will require law enforcement to input case codes for searches by the end of the year, the company said it will allow them to bypass the requirement "in emergencies," though those searches "will be flagged for administrator review."
