Judge Rules Lawsuit Challenging Norfolk's Use of Flock Cameras Can Proceed

Having actually worked with police and seen these cameras, I’m torn. If you’re searching for a suspect, these cameras really help to make sure the person is found. Quickly finding certain people can definitely save others from potential bad outcomes with them. Or the ability to quickly locate the car if someone who for example kidnapped a child.

But on the other hand, it allows mass surveillance of the innocent, which itself can cause big privacy violations. I suppose it really comes down to how it’s used. With about any technology, people will do great things using it and other people will find great ways to corrupt it to their own gains.

>Norfolk partnered with a company called Flock Safety in 2023 to install 172 automatic license plate reader cameras throughout the city. The goal, as Police Chief Mark Talbot put it, was to create “a nice curtain of technology,” which would make it “difficult to drive anywhere of any distance without running into a camera somewhere.”

Ooof that sure as heck sounds like a very granular search for ... everyone who gets caught on camera.