On Dec. 9, the Longmont City Council voted 5-1 to immediately pause sharing all data collected by Flock, the fast-growing AI license plate reader company. Council directed the Longmont city manager and police department to research what would be required to end their Flock contract, and return in March with possible alternatives to Flock’s technology.
“I want to be really clear that my intent is not to question the good faith of LPD [Longmont Police Department] or the public service and public safety department,” said newly elected Councilmember Jake Marsing, before proposing Longmont end its Flock contract.
“My concern here is about long-term governance, long-term privacy, security implications, and whether or not we’ve built the kind of oversight structure — or whether it’s even possible to build the kind of oversight structure — to rein in this technology.”…