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Residents press River Falls council to explain Flock camera use, data access and retention
Summary
Multiple residents raised privacy and transparency concerns about the city’s Flock automated license‑plate reader system; staff said logs and exception reports exist but acknowledged the city cannot absolutely guarantee vendor‑hosted data was never accessed outside policy.
Several residents used the public‑comment period and the administrator report to press the council on the city’s Flock automated license‑plate reader system. Syp Pitson said Flock employees had accessed cameras and criticized instances where the company’s staff reportedly accessed footage, including a cited example in another state; Pitson urged the council to consider removing the cameras.
"If we can't trust the cameras to efficiently and effectively do their job, why can't we trust the company to not take advantage of our young and vulnerable?" Pitson said, urging the city to consider removing the cameras.
City Administrator Scott Simpson and staff described the city's approach: the vendor retains data for 30 days in the cloud under the contract, the police department receives automated exception reports when access patterns are unusual, and deputy chiefs review access logs. Simpson and police‑presented staff said contracts and SOPs are available for public review and the police department intends to expand FAQ material and public engagement on the topic.
Staff acknowledged limits to verification: while logs and exception reporting are available for internal review, Simpson said the city cannot guarantee with absolute certainty that no external access occurred in all circumstances when vendor‑hosted cloud storage is involved. The council agreed to host an "Ask the City" public meeting in October to field further questions and review contract materials.
