If you’ve driven in Oakland recently, your car’s license plate number has almost certainly been recorded and stored in a privately owned database used by the police to investigate crimes.
That database is owned and operated by Flock Safety, a company that provides surveillance technologies — including automated license plate readers, drones, and gunshot detectors — to thousands of law enforcement agencies and communities across the U.S. Here in Oakland, Flock has installed nearly 300 license plate reader cameras.
But what exactly are these cameras, how do they work, and why have they generated so much debate? We’ve sought to answer these and other frequently asked questions below. If you have a question we didn’t answer, please email [email protected], and we’ll consider updating this post.
What is a license plate reader camera?
License plate reader cameras are surveillance tools that automatically record the license plate number of every vehicle that passes within their sight. They can be fixed to a pole or another stationary location, or a vehicle…