The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) have filed a lawsuit against the city of San Jose, California, over its use of nearly 500 Flock surveillance cameras that capture license plate data, alleging that the system violates privacy rights and state constitutional protections.
Moving forward, the lawsuit seeks to require police to obtain a warrant before accessing the license plate information, emphasizing the city’s extensive network of cameras that track residents’ movements. This action is part of a broader legal battle against Flock’s technology, with a similar case in Norfolk, Virginia, also targeting the company’s operations.
ACLU and EFF attorneys assert that San Jose’s ALPR [automatic license plate reader] program is particularly invasive, as few California municipalities retain driver location data for an entire year. The city’s extensive camera network raises significant concerns about public privacy, especially given residents’ reliance on vehicles for daily activities such as commuting and healthcare access.
The lawsuit is one of the most prominent legal challenges against Flock’s technology, with a similar case in Norfolk, Virginia, seeking to shut down the company’s operations there. These legal actions highlight growing concerns over the use of mass surveillance technologies in urban environments, prompting renewed discussions about the balance between public safety and individual privacy rights.