Athens resident raises security and privacy concerns about Flock license-plate cameras

Tuesday Deer, an Athens resident, used the public-comment period on June 9 to urge the commission to reconsider or scrutinize planned spending on Flock license-plate readers listed in the budget packet. "These cameras are not only unsafe, they play an active role in the criminality that they claim to deter," she said, and cited cybersecurity vulnerabilities she said are catalogued by MITRE and CVE systems and an open-records disclosure of prior access to camera footage.

Deer urged commissioners to treat the installations as a potential breach of neighborhood privacy. She cited an instance in 2025 where she said Flock employees had accessed camera footage in a community facility; she framed that episode as evidence external access to footage is possible and concerning.

Several commissioners raised the topic later in the meeting and asked the manager and police chief to provide a memo on contract terms and access controls. Commissioner R. (name as spoken) asked whether information captured by the cameras is restricted to local law enforcement except in cases of a court warrant; manager said the chief has verbally conveyed some assurances and offered to circulate a formal response. Commissioner Fischer said the chief told commissioners the department "scrubs" camera footage every 30 days and that most cameras in the county are privately owned and shared with law enforcement; Fischer cautioned that while systems can be hacked, he trusts local law enforcement's handling.

The commission did not take formal action on the cameras at the June 9 meeting; several commissioners requested a written explanation of contractual terms and data-access controls so the body and the public can assess privacy safeguards.

The manager's office and the police chief were asked to provide a memo describing who may access footage under current contracts and what safeguards (including retention and removal policies) are in place.