Four Flock Safety cameras in Southold, New York, were vandalized in July, according to Southold Police Chief Steve Grattan. The incidents occurred amid a nationwide backlash against the AI-powered surveillance technology.
Two cameras were vandalized during the July 4th weekend. One sustained paint splatters, while its wires were unplugged. Later, another camera was run over by a vehicle, and its wires were unplugged. A fifth camera was found flipped around, though it remains unclear if this was intentional or a result of recent storms.
Flock Safety cameras, which can track vehicles based on identifying characteristics, have raised Fourth Amendment and privacy concerns. These concerns have been amplified by instances of alleged misuse, including a case in Georgia where 18 police officers, including a supervisor, were arrested for allegedly misusing camera data to track a boyfriend.
Similar vandalism targeting Flock Safety systems has been reported in California, Connecticut, and upstate New York in recent months. The technology has been adopted by more than 5,000 law enforcement agencies across the country, with nearly 90,000 cameras deployed since 2018, according to the activist group DeFlock.
Southold currently has 11 Flock Safety cameras installed in various locations, including Greenport, East Marion, Mattituck, and Peconic. The first four cameras were installed in late 2022, with seven more added last year.
Legislative efforts are underway at both state and federal levels to regulate the use of Flock cameras. A proposed state bill would restrict how government agencies can use and share license plate data, mandate data deletion within 48 hours, and require annual reports on camera usage. Federally, legislation has been introduced to potentially strip federal funding from local governments or police departments that deploy the cameras.