Flock Safety paused pilot programs with DHS Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security Investigations amid confusion about investigation purposes. The company’s cameras are installed in over 4,000 communities and capture billions of license-plate photos monthly. Local law enforcement agencies, not Flock, own the collected data and handle external inquiries. Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias said an audit showed CBP accessed Illinois data and cited a 2023 state law barring sharing for out-of-state abortion or undocumented-immigrant investigations. Garrett Langley said pilots targeted human trafficking and fentanyl distribution, but that permissions and protocols were unclear and communication was poor.
Flock Safety, whose cameras are mounted in more than 4,000 communities nationwide, put a hold last week on pilot programs with the Department of Homeland Security's Customs and Border Protection and its law enforcement arm, Homeland Security Investigations, according to a statement by its founder and CEO, Garrett Langley. Among officials in other jurisdictions, Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias raised concerns. He announced Monday that an audit found Customs and Border Protection had accessed Illinois data, although he didn't say that the agency was seeking immigration-related information.
Langley said the company had initiated pilot programs with Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security Investigations to help combat human trafficking and fentanyl distribution. The company is unaware of any immigration-related searches the agencies made, but Langley said parameters were unclear. "We clearly communicated poorly. We also didn't create distinct permissions and protocols in the Flock system to en
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