Audit finds out‑of‑state access to Camarillo license‑plate images for one month; sheriff vows daily audits and vendor review

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office and Camarillo police presented an audit report March 11 showing that images from the city’s 25 leased automated license‑plate readers (ALPRs) were searchable by agencies outside California from Feb. 19 to Mar. 19, 2025.

Commander/Chief Tennyson said the department requested a proactive audit and discovered the exposure. "Images captured by our license plate readers were available for search by out‑of‑state law enforcement agencies for one month in the spring of 2025," he told the council. Tennyson said the agency had proactively disabled nationwide lookup in June 2023 but an exposure still occurred; Flock Safety accepted responsibility and has implemented multiple back‑end safeguards, including disabling out‑of‑state/federal discovery for California agencies, blocking immigration‑ and reproductive‑care keyword searches, requiring a neighbors‑based offense type to justify searches, and logging any setting changes.

Tennyson said the sheriff’s office now runs daily audits, would suspend the program if any out‑of‑state search is detected and is evaluating alternate vendors with a focus on data security and analytical capability. He described ALPRs as a valuable investigative tool that has helped recover stolen vehicles and support homicide and stolen‑gun investigations.

Community concerns: Six public commenters told the council they are worried about privacy, civil‑liberties risks and vendor accountability. Joseph Dubzinski Jr. said the system had been used for immigration searches and alleged 299 immigration‑related searches — a claim the chief said required review; Tennyson said the audit shows the vault of images was searchable but the county could not immediately determine whether hits or data exchanges occurred.

Council reaction: Council members expressed disappointment that out‑of‑state access occurred and commended the sheriff’s office for self‑auditing and publicly reporting the issue. Several council members urged the sheriff’s office to evaluate other vendors and to include stronger public transparency and oversight; others emphasized the tool’s public‑safety benefits and backed daily audits and vendor review.

What’s next: The sheriff’s office will continue daily system audits, explore alternative ALPR vendors and report back to council on vendor evaluation and any policy recommendations. The council did not take immediate binding action at this session but several members asked staff to pursue additional public engagement on the topic.

Provenance: Topic introduced SEG 2651; presentation and public comment concluded SEG 2853–SEG 3339.