Marty Gordon
Flock camera usage continues to be a hot topic, and this past week, Christiansburg town council took time during a work session to discuss it even more.
Recently, someone cut a cable to one of the town’s cameras. Police Chief Chris Ramsey said the vandalism was probably a direct impact of online tensions surrounding the issue.
“I do regret or lament that social media, I think, has driven people to feel so inflamed about this topic that they’re resorting to that kind of thing,” he said.
Ramsey said the topic is turning into a very heated political issue that has resulted in some bad actions.
Christiansburg currently has six Flock cameras that have been in operation since 2024. Their contract is for two years and was just renewed for two more years.
“There are going to be strong feelings on both sides of this issue because it does deal with civil liberties and the perception of a surveillance state, police state, free state — all of those different issues kind of coming together,” Ramsey said.
But the chief says there are plenty of misconceptions floating around the public.
The cameras in Christiansburg, according to Ramsey, capture the back of the car, storing the license plate photo for 21 days.
Mayor Michael Barber said there are plenty of misunderstandings about the use of the technology.
“There were a lot of misconceptions that people are being videoed and we’re recognizing what color shirt you have on — and you know, this is truly false,” Barber said.
Other council members asked Ramsey about the misuse of the Flock technology. While he said there have been no problems here, there have been cases of misuse in other states and those responsible are getting caught.
The word, “Flock”, is a specific company (Flock Safety) which produces these types of cameras and technology, but the name has stuck when the discussions take place.
Flock cameras are automated license plate readers and use AI-enabled surveillance systems with an estimated 120,000 being used not only by police departments but also private businesses nationwide.
Communities across the country have paused or canceled the Flock usage in the midst of criticism over Fourth Amendment protection.
The tracking records the vehicle’s characteristics including bumper stickers, roof racks and dents on the car, but does not grab any type of facial recognition. Police can use the technology to locate stolen vehicles, track fugitives and solve local crimes where the car might have been identified.
Privacy groups like the American Civil Liberties Union note that over 99 percent of scanned cars have no link to a crime, yet their location histories are stored for a time in searchable databases.
In the past, many of these same law enforcement agencies had similar units mounted on police cruisers, automatically photographing passing license plates. Most have now been removed.
Flock remains one of the top companies in the market area and recently announced changes to its platform intended to deal with privacy concerns and the misuse by police officers. The company says all law enforcement customers must implement an audit tool, which flags abnormal search behavior. In addition, the standard retention window will drop from 30 days to seven. Those cases connected to any type of crimes can be preserved for a longer period of time.
Users will also be required to enter a code, tying each search to a specific case.
The systems transitioned from police cruisers to fixed infrastructure mounted on poles.
No action on the Flock cameras took place during the work session but could be revisited during an upcoming regularly scheduled council meeting.
