A Salt Lake City resident told the council he is concerned about a proposed license-plate-reader grant and the city’s potential vendor choice.

Ben Engel, who identified himself as a District 4 resident, said he had become aware of security problems with Flock, a major provider of license-plate-reader systems, and urged the city not to select the company without stronger safeguards. "They've had some security issues with their cameras," Engel said, adding he had brought letters from state representatives to the Federal Trade Commission urging stronger protections.

Engel said two-factor authentication and stricter cybersecurity measures are important, but he went further, calling the company's past performance "terribly negligent." He warned about the ease of abusing mass surveillance technologies and asked council members to clarify interagency cooperation and data-sharing limits before authorizing such technology.

The exchange occurred during general public comment; no council vote or staff response authorizing or rejecting the grant was recorded in the meeting transcript. The council did not debate the grant or take a formal vote on it during the session.