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Residents urge Oxford to terminate Flock ALPR contract, citing privacy and data-sharing concerns
Summary
Two residents told council they want Oxford to end its contract with Flock Safety, saying the company's ALPR camera network creates a de facto mass-surveillance system, shares data beyond local control and has misled customers; council deferred the item to a review commission.
Public comment at the Oxford City Council meeting focused on concerns about the city’s contract with Flock Safety and the privacy implications of automatic license-plate reader (ALPR) cameras.
"The way I see it is that this is about the flock corporation and its ALPR cameras," said Linda Musnissi Kimball of Melinda Drive, who told council she is "flummoxed" that community members are calling for termination of the contract. Kimball said Flock has built "a mass surveillance infrastructure for vehicles deployed without public discussion" and alleged the company has shared locally collected ALPR data outside U.S. protections.
Janice Stettin of Vine Street urged council to view recent media coverage and specifically referenced a John Oliver segment she said showed instances of problematic use and erroneous plate reads by Flock. "It's about the corporation and how they really can screw up," Stettin said, recounting an example shown in the broadcast.
Council did not take immediate action on the contract. Councilor Bill noted the issue was not taken up by council that night because the Police Community Relations and Review Commission requested a discussion first; the council expects the commission to address the topic before it returns to a full council agenda.
