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Flock cameras have made the news across the country for a variety of reasons, mostly stemming from who uses them. What are Flock cameras, and what do they mean for California?
A concern for some activists and other members of the public has been who can access the data collected from Flock cameras and similar technologies.
These cameras have been in use for years, with some of their more grabbing entries being from reports of federal agents using them to track vehicles of suspected illegal immigrants. Law enforcement agencies in California have been criticized for sharing data from Flock cameras and those like them with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, CalMatters previously reported.
People have also been arrested for damaging or destroying Flock cameras, with the CEO of the company Flock Safety apologizing for calling activists who destroy the equipment "terrorists", Forbes reported.
What are FLOCK cameras?
Flock cameras are automatic license plate readers, or ALPRs. There are other ALPRs in the market, but Flock cameras are some of the most well-known ALPRs.
The cameras, however, capture more than just license plate information.
Flock Safety defines their cameras as: "a license plate reader camera built to identify vehicle details that may help generate investigative leads. That includes the license plate, along with attributes like make, model, color, and other visible characteristics. Flock cameras are not general-purpose surveillance systems designed to identify people," according to Flock Safety's website.
A user-based website, LPRmaps.com, lets people report how many cameras are in each city across the U.S., showing that there are ALPRs in 18,640 cameras across 863 cities in California. The highest density of cameras is in some big cities such as San Francisco, Oakland, and San Diego.
According to USA TODAY, Flock operates in more than 6,000 communities and is present in almost every corner of American law enforcement.
Founded by a group of Georgia Tech alumni, Flock is a roughly eight-year-old company valued at about $7.5 billion, according to USA TODAY.
They are designed to aid law enforcement, and cameras are sold to law enforcement agencies, local governments, businesses, and even homeowners' associations, according to USA TODAY. The data collected by the cameras can alert officers when and where a car has left from and where it's going, helping to create a detailed report that helps investigate stolen vehicles, missing persons, and other criminal cases.
As of September 2025, the cameras were involved in about 20% of arrests in the areas where they were stationed.
Garret Langley, the founder and CEO of Flock, told USA TODAY, " We want to turn every officer into Superman on day zero."
“Our goal is to give cities control,” Langley added. “Transparency and oversight remain in their hands.”
Are Flock cameras banned in California?
Automatic license plate readers, such as Flock cameras, are not banned in California; however, the state has restrictions on the technology and how it and the data it collects can be used.
California Civil Code 1798.90.5 outlines what constitutes an ALPR as well as who uses them. The law only allows access to data between public agencies.
A failed California Senate bill from 2025, SB 274, attempted to place restrictions on law enforcement agencies sharing data with each other.
Ernesto Centeno Araujo covers breaking news for the Ventura County Star. He can be reached at [email protected], 805-437-0224 or @ecentenoaraujo on Instagram and X.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: What are Flock cameras? Why have they caused a stir in California?
