A Flock Safety license plate reader camera mounted on a pole against an overcast sky

The Surveillance Grid You Never Voted For: Flock Cameras, ICE, and the Courts' Failure to Catch Up

The Surveillance Grid You Never Voted For: Flock Cameras, ICE, and the Courts’ Failure to Catch Up Sometime in the past few years, a camera appeared on a pole near your home. You probably did not vote on it. Your city council may have approved a contract you never heard about. The company that makes the camera — a Georgia-based firm called Flock Safety — now operates an estimated 80,000 license plate readers across more than 5,000 communities in 49 states. And the data those cameras collect, recording every vehicle that passes with a timestamp and location, is being shared with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ...

February 20, 2026 · Editor