Vigilante Movement Targets Flock Safety Surveillance Cameras, Prompting Company to Disguise Devices

A growing bipartisan backlash against Flock Safety's network of over 90,000 automated license plate readers has sparked a nationwide vigilante movement, with activists disabling, paint-bombing, and cutting down cameras in at least 23 states. While Flock Safety and law enforcement defend the technology as vital for public safety, critics raise severe privacy concerns, pointing to instances of police stalking and covert camera placement inside roadside speedometers. In response, dozens of municipalities have canceled their contracts, while citizens turn to crowdsourced mapping and physical sabotage to reclaim their privacy.

Vigilante attacks on cameras

• ▪The Guardian identified at least 33 instances of people damaging, vandalizing, and destroying Flock Safety cameras across 23 states
• ▪An anonymous vigilante known as "NoMark" disabled a Flock Safety automated license plate reader camera near a local Taco Bell in June 2026
• ▪Vigilantes have targeted Flock Safety cameras using methods such as paint bombing, 3D-printed obstructions, and cutting down camera towers

Flock surveillance technology capabilities

• ▪Flock Safety has deployed over 95,000 automated license plate reader cameras across the United States.
• ▪Flock Safety automated license plate readers scan license plates billions of times monthly across approximately 6,000 communities
• ▪A video shared on X in July 2026 showed a working Flock Safety camera covertly embedded inside a roadside speedometer in Volusia County, Florida

Privacy concerns over tracking

• ▪The crowdsourced mapping website DeFlock.org tracks and maps the locations of automated license plate readers across the United States
• ▪Civil liberties advocates argue that automated license plate readers can surveil innocent civilians without warrants or due process

Criminal prosecutions of vandals

• ▪Jeffrey Sovern of Suffolk, Virginia, was charged with destruction of property for allegedly damaging more than a dozen Flock Safety cameras
• ▪Jevon Martinez was arrested in New Mexico after allegedly destroying 13 Flock Safety cameras

Municipal contract cancellations

• ▪Privacy advocates at DeFlock.org note that 53 US cities have ended their previous automated license plate reader contracts with Flock Safety
• ▪Verona, Wisconsin, voted not to renew its contract with Flock Safety and covered its three installed cameras with black trash bags

Police misuse of systems

• ▪Law enforcement officers have used Flock Safety's search features to track individuals based on distinct physical markers like tattoos and specific T-shirts
• ▪Multiple police officers have lost their jobs after misusing Flock Safety automated license plate reader cameras to stalk individuals