"The city is tightening its contracting rules amid threats of a lawsuit if it doesn't cut ties with the controversial vendor Flock Safety. Strictly speaking, Berkeley owns the data, but the tools used to gather and store it are made by Flock Safety, a company that provides surveillance technologies including automated license plate readers, drones, and gunshot detectors to thousands of law enforcement agencies and communities across the U.S."
"License plate reader cameras are surveillance tools that automatically record the license plate number of every vehicle that passes within their sight. They can be fixed to a pole or another stationary location, or a vehicle. All these license plate scans become data that police use to investigate crimes. Officers can get real-time alerts when a camera spots a license plate that's on a stolen or wanted car."
Berkeley uses Flock Safety surveillance tools, including 52 license-plate-reading cameras, to record and store vehicle movements for police investigations. The city claims ownership of the data while relying on Flock's hardware and storage systems. Officers can receive real-time alerts for stolen or wanted vehicles and search plate-scan databases to trace vehicle movements. Flock Safety operates a large nationwide network serving thousands of communities, law enforcement agencies, and businesses, and has received substantial venture capital funding. The presence of these cameras has sparked debate, legal threats, and a push to tighten municipal contracting rules.
Read at www.berkeleyside.org
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