Reported by 2 outlets
The story so far
AI summary of the reporting below · Updated · How we work
The city council of Plymouth, Minnesota, unanimously voted on September 22 to terminate its automated license plate reader contract with Flock Safety. After the city suspended local user accounts and sent formal cancellation notices by mail and email, corporate representatives failed to acknowledge the decision. Following more than a month of silence, Police Chief Eric Fadden directed department staff to physically unplug the power cords to prevent the cameras from functioning or recording license plates. [1][2]
Flock operates over 300,000 cameras across the United States that use artificial intelligence to log license plates, vehicle models, paint colors, and stickers. The company faces mounting privacy controversies, including officers arrested for misusing the system, algorithm-driven traffic stops based on travel history, and the wrongful stop of a car reviewer by Plymouth police. Nearby Dayton, Minnesota, also paused its program and disabled two cameras, though Flock replaced the units anyway despite explicit instructions to halt work. [2]
While more cities are canceling their contracts with Flock Safety, just as many are discovering how difficult that can be in some instances. Plymouth, Minnesota's city council voted to terminate its contract with Flock in September, but failed to respond to the city's request. For over a month, the cameras remained up, and the city…
via The Verge
The Plymouth City Council was left with no choice but to physically disconnect the cameras after Flock failed to respond to its demands.
via Tom’s Hardware