Florida county finds 11 unpermitted Flock cameras with unidentified owners
Creepy.
After officials in Florida's St. Lucie County opted to end use of Flock cameras and began removing them, they discovered several devices that were not connected to any local agencies. Reports indicate that county leaders thought they had 52 cameras, but found 14 additional ones that were unaccounted for and unpermitted.
Unknown Ownership and Privacy Concerns
Three of the cameras without permits were later claimed by the St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office, although the department did not explain why that gear lacked proper paperwork. That left 11 Flock cameras placed in the area with unknown owners that county officials knew nothing about. Multiple county residents expressed feeling unsafe or unhappy about this discovery.
We have reached out to Flock for comment and will update this story if we hear back.
Scrutiny Over Flock Surveillance Tech
Flock's cameras have faced extensive scrutiny over their security risks and potential for privacy abuses. Florida's Department of Transportation previously enacted a ban on Flock license plate readers from being placed on state roads by law enforcement. Although some city and state governments have reversed course on the use of this company's gear, Flock's cameras remain common, with more than 100,000 reportedly in use across the US.
Removal and Interim Measures
A county official stated that notices were placed at the unclaimed cameras ordering them to be removed by whoever owns them. In the interim, the devices were covered with plastic bags to prevent any further data collection. A subsequent check at the location of one unpermitted camera found that it had been removed, though there was no indication of who took it down.
