Flock Safety built one of the largest automated license plate camera networks in the United States. Now the surveillance technology company is changing how its platform stores data, approves searches, and detects unusual behavior after public backlash and documented abuses by law enforcement officers.
CEO Garrett Langley apologized for cases where law enforcement officers misused Flock Safety data, while defending the company’s goals and promising stronger controls. The changes arrive as Flock Safety’s reach and revenue continue to expand, raising a central question: how can a system built for investigations prevent its power from being abused?
A Nationwide Network Under Pressure
Flock Safety operates 120,000 license plate reading cameras spread across 49 states in the United States. The cameras record license plate numbers and other characteristics of vehicles passing by every day, creating a vast nationwide network that police have credited as an important tool for investigations.
The company has partnered with 6,000 law enforcement agencies and 1,000 private customers. That footprint gives Flock Safety a major role in how vehicle information moves through investigations, but it also means mistakes or misuse can affect people far beyond a single police department.
A police investigation by the Roseville police department in Roseville, California, exposed one serious problem. Between 2023 and 2024, Flock Safety’s cameras mistook one license plate number for another 71 percent of the time, according to the investigation.
That error rate adds urgency to the company’s new controls. A mistaken plate match can send an investigation toward the wrong vehicle, and access to stored vehicle data can create another layer of risk when officers use the system outside proper procedures.
Flock Safety Announces New Limits
Flock Safety announced that it is cutting the data retention window from 30 days to seven days. The American Civil Liberties Union called the reduction “a step in the right direction,” but the change does not erase the larger debate around a camera network that records vehicle information across 49 states.
The platform will also require users to enter a case code before each search. The requirement can be overridden in emergencies, preserving access when officers face urgent situations while adding a record of ordinary searches.
Flock Safety plans another safeguard for every law enforcement customer. By the end of 2026, all of those customers will have to activate a tool that flags abnormal search behavior and locks users out until an administrator completes a review.
Langley described the goal in direct terms: “You will get caught, plain and simple. If you try to use this tool illegally, you will get caught.” He also said, “we’re the first company to ever shine a light on it and build the tools to find it.”
Growth Meets Accountability
The changes come during a period of rapid business growth for Flock Safety. Its annual revenue increased from $300 million in January 2026 to $500 million in June 2026, even as public scrutiny focused on the company’s technology and its use by law enforcement.
That tension puts the company’s promise of accountability under a brighter spotlight. A platform can help police investigate cases, yet its scale gives mistakes and misuse a wider path through the justice system.
Langley acknowledged the human impact of those failures, saying, “It kills me that she went through that.” He added, “hindsight is a brutal tool,” and recognized the responsibility that comes with giving powerful tools to authorities: “when you are given power, which many people are, particularly in law enforcement, you should have higher standards of accountability.”
He also rejected the idea that Flock Safety’s system represents unchecked surveillance, saying, “we’re not Big Brother.” But the company’s next steps will be judged by how its safeguards work in practice across 6,000 law enforcement agencies, not only by how they sound in a public statement.
Langley argued that misuse should bring consequences beyond losing a job: “It should not just be a termination. It should be a criminal offense if you abuse your power.” That position places responsibility on both the company that provides the system and the agencies that use it.
Flock Safety’s new seven-day retention window, case-code requirement, and abnormal-search alerts mark a major change in the platform’s rules. By the end of 2026, every law enforcement customer will face the same requirement to activate behavior monitoring and administrator reviews.
The technology’s future now depends on whether those controls can match its reach. With 120,000 cameras, 6,000 law enforcement partners, and 1,000 private customers, Flock Safety is not making a small adjustment; it is testing whether a nationwide surveillance network can earn trust through tighter limits and visible accountability.
Based on
- Sensing He’s in Deep Trouble, Flock Safety CEO Says It’s All Been a Big Misunderstanding — futurism.com
- Flock CEO apologizes for cases where surveillance technology was abused as company rolls out changes – CBS News — cbsnews.com
- Surveillance tech company Flock announces platform changes amid public backlash | AP News — apnews.com
