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Resident asks council to review Flock Security camera deal over data and privacy concerns
Summary
A resident urged the Springville City Council to review its contract with Flock Security amid national reports of data breaches and concerns that license-plate data might be accessed or shared with federal agencies; the police chief said the city believes it owns the data and will have the city attorney review the agreement.
During public comment, Chris Poole told the council he recently learned the city uses Flock Security cameras and urged officials to review the arrangement after news of company data-breach allegations. "They own the data that is being recorded and is being accessed federally and being sold in some cases to other federal agencies," Poole said, adding that some reports referenced sharing with immigration enforcement.
Poole asked the council to examine whether Springville's data is adequately protected and whether local control can be preserved. "I was hoping that we could find some way to maybe review the deal with Flock Security with a further understanding now that we know they're not as trustworthy as they originally presented themselves to be," he said.
The chair asked the police chief to respond. The chief said the city has worked with Flock for about four years and described the system as license-plate-reading that captures still rear-vehicle photos. "Our cameras are for license plate reading only ... it captures just a still shot of the rear of any vehicle," the chief said, and added that "it was my understanding that we own the data" and that the city attorney will review the original agreement to confirm compliance. The chief said he has not yet been given reason to think Flock violated the agreement but that the city will investigate questions raised.
The council clarified that a different product called Condor (described by privacy advocates as live-tracking video) is not used by the city and that Springville's cameras are not capable of live-following pedestrians, according to the chief.
