Flock Safety, a surveillance technology company that has sold more than 120,000 automated license plate reader cameras to about 6,000 U.S. police departments, is facing at least 34 canceled city contracts since the start of 2026 amid public backlash over privacy concerns and officer misconduct, with dozens of police officers losing their jobs. A new AI tool from the company can track people by location, time window, and behavior pattern without needing a name or license plate, and a lawmaker has a planned bill that would withhold federal funding from agencies that use the technology. As cities drop Flock, some are switching to rival surveillance companies, though privacy experts say those alternatives raise similar concerns.
Mother Jones frames the story as corporate accountability failure and PR spin, emphasizing the scale of cancelled contracts, officer firings, and Flock executives now trying to claim credit for catching bad cops despite widespread misconduct enabled by their technology.
NPR frames the story around the business and competitive fallout, noting cities canceling contracts with Flock but pivoting to describe how rival surveillance companies are seizing the opportunity, with privacy experts warning the alternatives are equally concerning.
Decrypt frames the story around a specific technical revelation (from Wired's reporting) about Flock's new AI tool, OS Investigate, detailing exactly how the software can track people without a name or plate, and includes expert and activist reactions plus legislative pushback.