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Flock License-Plate Readers Deployed Nationwide, Spark ICE Search Controversy

7/22/2026

41 8 Full Breakdown

Summary

Story summary

U.S. law-enforcement agencies have installed Flock’s license-plate readers in 49 states.
Critics mapped over 100,000 Flock cameras that record vehicle details and upload them to a central database.
A 404 Media probe found more than 4,000 ICE and 7,000 immigration searches using the system.
Flock, valued at $8 billion, says it does not share data with ICE, but nearly 60 municipalities have cancelled or refused contracts in the last 13 months.

History

Historical Context

Following the post-9/11 surge in NYPD surveillance, the department built a citywide license-plate reader network that fed into the Domain Awareness System. A 2012 Police Executive Research Forum report found 71 % of U.S. police departments then used ANPR. Today Flock Safety runs more than 100,000 cameras in 49 states, sharing data with ICE and sparking new ACLU privacy lawsuits.

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Story summary

U.S. law-enforcement agencies have installed Flock’s license-plate readers in 49 states.
Critics mapped over 100,000 Flock cameras that record vehicle details and upload them to a central database.
A 404 Media probe found more than 4,000 ICE and 7,000 immigration searches using the system.
Flock, valued at $8 billion, says it does not share data with ICE, but nearly 60 municipalities have cancelled or refused contracts in the last 13 months.

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