The Tool Desk
Outbyte PC Repair FREEClear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Flock Safety cameras record vehicle observations—not a driver’s identity or a continuous, person-specific trip. An observation can include a plate image, vehicle characteristics, the time, and a camera location identifier. How long that record remains searchable, and which agencies can access it, depends on the deployment’s current terms, settings, local policies, and applicable law.
What data do Flock cameras collect?
Flock describes its automated license plate reader (ALPR) system as collecting a license-plate image, vehicle characteristics, a date and time stamp, and a camera location identifier. In practical terms, a record says that a vehicle matching those characteristics was observed at a particular camera at a particular time. It does not, by itself, establish who was driving or show a person’s complete trip. Flock’s data privacy description and its privacy policy explain the vendor’s stated handling of this information.
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These plate-reader observations should not be conflated with every type of information handled by Flock’s broader evidence platform. Its privacy materials also address other services and hardware; video or audio evidence, where applicable, is distinct from the ALPR observation described here. Flock’s explanation of license-plate data deletion concerns plate data specifically.
How is an observation stored and searched?
The platform makes recorded observations searchable. An authorized user can query records across cameras available to that user, subject to the permissions and rules governing the deployment. A search can help locate observations of a vehicle at different camera locations, but it is still a search of recorded sightings—not proof that a particular person was in the vehicle or that the system continuously tracked that person.
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Flock says customer organizations control sharing settings, and its privacy policy says an authorized law-enforcement search requires a justification and generates an audit trail. Those statements describe the vendor’s stated controls; they do not establish which agencies have access in a specific city or guarantee that every access is lawful. The actual reach of a search depends on permissions, agreements, configuration, and local and state law.
How long does Flock keep license plate data?
There is no single retention period that applies to every Flock deployment. On August 13, 2026, the Associated Press reported that Flock had announced a change to a seven-day standard retention window, down from 30 days. The report also described longer preservation for data associated with a case number. Treat seven days as the announced standard—not a guarantee about every customer’s current system or records. Local rules, contracts, settings, and evidence-preservation needs can produce different outcomes. The Associated Press report also said law-enforcement customers would have to implement an audit tool by January 1; as of October 4, 2026, that date had not yet arrived.
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Evidence preservation is different from the ordinary rolling retention window: information preserved for a case may remain available longer than routine observations. Flock’s Evidence Policy describes a possible extension of up to one year, subject to the policy’s conditions and approval by an elected official and/or governing body, unless a longer period is already required by jurisdictional law. Whether that provision applies to a particular ALPR record must be checked against the current contract and local rules; it should not be read as a universal one-year setting.
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| Deployment | Published retention information | Published access or oversight details |
|---|---|---|
| Palo Alto, California | The city’s ALPR page describes a 30-day limit. | The page says access is limited to trained staff with a legitimate law-enforcement need, searches are logged and audited, and sharing with other agencies requires memoranda of understanding (MOUs). It also says the city began posting partially redacted search logs monthly on April 21, 2026. |
| Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | The city’s page describes a local transition from 30-day to seven-day retention. | The page describes access for authorized, trained police employees with a legitimate need and an Audit Assist system that flags unusual search patterns. |
Sources: Palo Alto Police Department ALPR page and Oklahoma City’s Flock LPR page. Check each page for current policy details; local examples do not establish what another jurisdiction does.
Who can see or search the data, and can agencies share it?
Access is determined by the deployment’s permissions and governing rules. Flock says customers can control whether data is shared, but that does not reveal which agencies are enabled to search a given network, whether a separate agreement applies, or what restrictions a jurisdiction imposes. A local agency’s policy and sharing agreements are more informative than a vendor-wide description.
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Palo Alto’s stated controls illustrate the kinds of safeguards to look for: trained users, a legitimate law-enforcement purpose, logged and audited searches, and MOUs for interagency sharing. Oklahoma City describes a different local detail—an Audit Assist system that flags unusual patterns. Neither city’s procedure should be assumed to apply nationally.
There is also a documented compliance concern. In an August 25, 2025 announcement, the Illinois Secretary of State said an office audit found that Customs and Border Protection (CBP) had gained access to Illinois license-plate camera data in violation of state law. This is the state office’s reported audit finding; it does not establish the access configuration or legal status of every Flock deployment. Read the Illinois Secretary of State’s announcement.
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How can you find out whether your city uses Flock cameras?
Start with the local law-enforcement agency or city that would operate or oversee the cameras. Look for an ALPR or LPR policy, privacy notice, public-information page, contract, or records-disclosure portal. A city may use the terms “automated license plate recognition,” “ALPR,” or “LPR” rather than “Flock.”
- Find the agency’s current policy. Search its official website for Flock, ALPR, or LPR and check the publication or revision date.
- Check the retention rule. Look for the routine deletion period, how case-related preservation works, who can authorize an extension, and whether the policy distinguishes plate observations from other evidence.
- Review access and sharing. Ask which agencies or user groups can search the data, whether sharing requires an MOU or other approval, and what legal limits govern access.
- Look for oversight records. Check whether searches are logged, how audits are conducted, what triggers review, and whether redacted logs or audit summaries are published.
- If the public page is incomplete, ask the agency directly. Request its current vendor contract, retention schedule, sharing-agreement or MOU list, and available audit or search-log disclosures. The agency can tell you which records are public and how to request them.
What should you compare between deployments?
For a meaningful comparison, use current local documents rather than a general statement about the vendor. Check the specific data fields, routine retention and evidence holds, who can query or receive records, what justifications and laws apply, and how misuse is detected and disclosed. A shorter retention period does not answer who can access the data while it is retained; access rules and public audit records need to be evaluated separately.
In a 2022 company blog post, Flock CEO Garrett Langley wrote that searches were recorded and available for audit. That is a historical company statement, not a present-day guarantee that every deployment publishes logs or that every access is appropriate. Current local policy and actual oversight disclosures are the relevant evidence for a particular system. Langley’s 2022 statement.
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