Frequently Asked Questions
General Questions
- What are Flock / ALPR cameras?
- Where are Flock / ALPR cameras are located?
- Does Flock / ALPR surveillance violate the 4th amendment?
- Do Flock / ALPR cameras impact marginalized communities?
- Which communities have removed Flock / ALPR cameras?
- Who is Flock data shared with?
- Does ICE track people with Flock / ALPR data?
- Do Flock / ALPR cameras reduce crime?
- Does Flock / ALPR improve community trust in police?
Eugene Specific Questions
- When were Flock cameras adopted in Eugene?
- Were City Council or the Police Commission consulted in Flock adoption?
- Was the community consulted or notified about Flock surveillance adoption?
General Questions
What are Flock / ALPR cameras?
Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) like the Flock Safety brand camera system in use in Eugene, start by continuously scanning vehicle license plates. But they do much more than just scan license plates. The cameras use AI technology comparable to facial recognition software to identify objects in their field of view, including bicycles, vehicles, animals, and people. They record footage of every passing vehicle and analyze license plate number, make, model, color, and other identifiers like bumper stickers and even dents to capture a “Vehicle Fingerprint” (trademarked by Flock) for a mass database. The devices can ID cars from 75 feet away at speeds of up to 100 mph, day or night (see the Flock Safety FAQ).
Where are Flock / ALPR cameras are located?
The best place to view camera locations is at https://deflock.me. This is a crowd-sourced website focused on discovering and documenting the location of ALPR cameras. Additionally, we are trying to gather as much of this information as possible through direct public document requests. Any data discovered through document requests will also be posted on deflock.
Does Flock / ALPR surveillance violate the 4th amendment?
Fourth Amendment, Constitution of the United States:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
The 4th Amendment guarantees the right to be protected from unreasonable search and seizure without warrant.
Similar tracking has been put to the test and found violate these rights, specifically using unwarranted GPS trackers (link) and aerial trackers (link). A major case in Virginia is currently testing Flock data directly (link).
Do Flock / ALPR cameras impact marginalized communities?
Yes.
Marginalized communities are at a higher risk. ALPRs in other jurisdictions have been used against immigrants, including in cities that had declared themselves sanctuary jurisdictions (link). As early as 2006, police in NYC were using ALPR to record everyone who went to mosques (link).
Police have been used ALPR system to track
Which communities have removed Flock / ALPR cameras?
Yes.
There is a growing list of communities that are curtailing and rejecting the use of surveillance systems. Some of the most recent are
- Austin, Texas
- Denver, Colorado
- Oak Park, Illinois
- Mount Prospect, Illinois
- San Diego, California
- San Marcos, Texas
- Scarsdale, New York
- Sedona, Arizona
Who is Flock data shared with?
All Flock data goes into a central repository of data. Each customer can then decide how that data will be shared. It can be made available for national and state-wide searches, or only available to a curated list of organizations.
The Eugene Police currently share their data with 20 other Oregon organization (link), including some that one that is known to pass data to ICE (link).
Flock reserves the right to share the data with anyone they wish in section 5.3 of the Contract, Disclosure of Footage (link).
We do know that organization have abused shared data. 1, 2, 3, 4
We also know that Flock data (including from Southern Oregon) has been secretly and illegally been shared with the feds many times. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
Does ICE track people with Flock / ALPR data?
Yes.
There is clear documentation that show that ICE has a long usage of pulling travel data to track people. This has continued and happens regularly even in states where this usage is prohibited. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Do Flock / ALPR cameras reduce crime?
No.
It has been well shown through multiple research studies that the use of ALPR systems does NOT reduce crime. 1, 2, 3, 4
Does Flock / ALPR improve community trust in police?
No.
These systems are shown to significantly reduce community trust in the police and reduce citizen engagement. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Eugene Specific Questions
When were Flock cameras adopted in Eugene?
The contract (link) between the City of Eugene and Flock Safety, signed on March 24, 2025, by Sarah Medary, Eugene City Manager.
Installation of the 57 cameras has occurred during the spring and summer of 2025, although we see evidence that cameras are being moved regularly as they test new locations.
Were City Council or the Police Commission consulted in Flock adoption?
No.
From direct conversations with City Councilors and member of the Police Commission, we know that except for one or two individuals, neither group was consulted about the Eugene Polices decision, purchase, and deployment of a mass surveillance network in our community.
Many member of these groups embarrassingly found out about it through news and public comments at meetings.
Was the community consulted or notified about Flock surveillance adoption?
No.
No effort has been made by the Eugene Police to reach out to the community about the decision to adopt a mass surveillance network. The Police didn’t even consult with the Police Commission, the group whose mission it is to “Increase communications, understanding and trust between police and the people in Eugene” and to “…protect the civil rights and liberties of everyone in Eugene” (link).