Mayor says LAPD should stop using Flock devices; concerned data is used for deportations

This is read by an automated voice.Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.

See more from the L.A.Times in Google Search.

Set us as preferred Mayor Karen Bass said Thursday that the LAPD should stop working with Flock Safety, warning that the company, which operates AI-enabled license plate readers that allow authorities to monitor vehicles around the city, had lost public trust.In her most forceful comments to date on the topic, Bass said while she supports license plate reading technology generally as a tool for law enforcement, Flock had “lost the trust of Angelenos and residents across the country, especially in immigrant communities targeted by the federal administration.”“There are many companies that provide this technology to cities nationwide,” Bass said in a statement.“The LAPD needs to identify another company that doesn’t share data.”LAPD officials have said Flock’s technology enables investigators to solve crimes, helping to find vehicles that have been reported stolen or linked to suspects.

Last month, the department announced it was pausing its relationship with Flock, but police officials later said they were in the process of negotiating a new deal with the company that would include more data sharing and collection safeguards.California The LAPD halted its relationship with Flock Safety last week over concerns about how the company stores and shares data collected from automated license plate readers, but officials said Tuesday they are negotiating a new deal with more safeguards in place.Dozens of mostly smaller cities have deactivated their Flock cameras or ended their contracts with the company over concerns that it provides data to the Trump administration that can be used to track down immigrants for deportation.Bass joined the chorus of activists and local officials calling for the LAPD to end its relationship with the company outright.Her opponent in the November mayoral election, Nithya Raman, said la...