Crow's Nest
Wednesday, October 28, 2026 · The digital civil-liberties brief · View on the web
Flock Safety removed six license plate cameras from Lebanon without city knowledge.
Flock Safety confirmed it removed six license plate readers from Lebanon, Ohio, in error while the city had paused the program over unanswered questions about the vendor's data practices, local outlets report. (WCPO 9 News)
Top
- Pinellas County commissioners take no action on automated license plate readers. (Florida Politics)
- Hertfordshire Constabulary deployed two mobile live facial recognition vans across the county. (Hemel Today)
- DOJ sues Anne Arundel County Public Schools over student gender transition notice. (justice.gov)
- Privacy group noyb filed 5 complaints against Scale AI over biometric tracking. (noyb.eu)
- Residents challenge California police departments seeking everyday drone patrols. (CalMatters)
The pattern
Three police departments investigated, disciplined or charged officers for misusing automated license-plate reader data.
- Five Indianapolis police officers were charged with abusing Flock cameras to stalk. (Boing Boing)
- Chicago police opened an internal probe into misuse of license-plate reader systems. (WTTW News)
- Oak Ridge police suspended an officer for misusing a license plate reader. (WATE 6 On Your Side)
Under the radar
- San Marcos approved a contract extension with Axon despite data privacy questions. (KXAN.com)
- DeSoto County fired a deputy for capturing surveillance images of naked inmates. (WFLA)
Flock watch
- A Los Angeles City Council motion requiring added safeguards before an LAPD streetlight license plate reader pilot failed 9-6, short of the 10 votes needed (westsidecurrent.com)
- Flock Safety reinstalled two license-plate cameras in Dayton without authorization. (The Drive)
- Wellfleet voters approved a ban on automated license plate readers without warrants. (Cape Cod Times)
- State records show 78 percent of Connecticut police departments deploy license-plate readers. (New Haven Register)
- Minnesota counties install Flock surveillance cameras after suburbs removed them. (Star Tribune)
Surveillance & Privacy
- Class actions allege Coco and Serve delivery robots captured facial geometry illegally. (Digital Trends)
- Fight for the Future urged Ring owners to cover cameras on Halloween. (Gadget Review)
- Sens. Ron Wyden and Adam Schiff demand release of secret FISA ruling. (wired.com)
- Brownsville plans police surveillance drones over local entertainment districts to monitor crowds. (KRGV)
Coming Up
Wed Oct 28 · EXPIRES · Half Moon Bay, CA — Half Moon Bay's two-year Flock automated license plate reader pilot project expires (coastside buzz)
Wed Oct 28 · MEETING · Avondale Estates, Georgia — Board of Mayor and Commissioners addresses the city's use of Flock Safety license plate readers (decaturish.com)
Wed Oct 28 · MEETING · Wakefield, England — West Yorkshire Police deploy a live facial recognition camera van in Wakefield city centre (Wakefield Express)
Thu Oct 29 · HEARING · Court — Court considers final approval of $59.5 million Flo Health data privacy settlement (USA TODAY)
Fri Oct 30 · DEADLINE · Dutchess County, NY — Deadline for Flock Safety to remove its automated license plate reader equipment from Dutchess County (The Millerton News)
Fri Oct 30 · DEADLINE · Dutchess County, New York — Flock Group Inc. must remove all hardware under county demand notice (Mid Hudson News)
Speech & Press
- UK Home Office embeds predictive AI across borders secretly, report finds. (openrightsgroup.org)
- Calexico police repeatedly denied resident public records requests for body camera footage. (Imperial Valley Press Online)
- University of Cincinnati speech syllabi threaten students with grade deductions for isms. (The College Fix)
Useful
Atlas of Surveillance — EFF's searchable record of which surveillance technologies each police department has bought, by city and agency.
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