Exclusive | Flock camera CEO announces drastic new change to how company stores data

Flock Safety is slashing how long its license-plate cameras store data from 30 days to just seven — while forcing cops to justify every search — amid mounting scrutiny from privacy advocates and politicians.CEO Garrett Langley told The California Post the overhaul amounts to the toughest license-plate-reader policy in the country.About 90% of investigative searches on Flock’s system already occur within seven days, Langley said.“I’ve realized communities need my help,” Langley said, explaining the company’s decision to move beyond simply giving police departments privacy tools and instead make some safeguards mandatory.“They need flock to set the standard for how this kind of technology should be deployed,” he added.

“I think sadly, police abuse has been a problem for longer than people want to talk about.”The changes come as Flock faces growing criticism over the spread of its automated license plate readers, which can capture information about vehicles traveling through communities and make it searchable by law enforcement.The American Civil Liberties Union has accused Flock and other ALPR companies of helping create a nationwide mass-surveillance network, arguing that the technology can reveal where people live, work, worship and travel.The ACLU says Flock cameras number roughly 120,000 nationwide.Flock, meanwhile, argues its technology is an important investigative tool — and that stronger safeguards can address concerns about abuse without eliminating the technology altogether.

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By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.Never miss a story “The ACLU has pushed for case code as a requirement in the search for years.

We built it,” the leading executive of Flock said in announcing the change.“So things like case code, things like audit assis...