Florida officials investigate ownership of 11 unpermitted vehicle-tracking cameras
St. Lucie County police in Florida found 14 unpermitted Flock licence-plate cameras after being ordered to remove cameras tracking vehicles on county roads. Eleven have no clear owner, prompting concerns about who can access the data and whether it is being collected without proper oversight.
The sheriff’s office claimed three cameras but has not explained why they lacked permits or whether it accessed their data. County officials have given owners 30 days to remove the cameras, with some deadlines falling as late as 20 October; staff plan to cover any that remain. The discovery comes amid documented cases of police misusing Flock systems, including officers repeatedly tracking people for personal reasons.
- 11 of 14 cameras have no clear owner.
- County officials gave owners 30 days to remove them.
- Past police misuse has heightened privacy concerns.
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Licence-plate reading cameras photograph passing vehicles to track their movements and identify vehicles of interest to police. Fourteen of these cameras, known as Flock systems, were discovered installed on roads in St. Lucie County, Florida, without proper permits. Eleven of them have no identified owner, raising questions about who installed them and who can access the data they collect.
St. Lucie County officials have ordered that all 14 cameras be removed within 30 days, with some deadlines extending to late October. The sheriff's office admits to owning three cameras but has not explained why they lacked permits or clarified whether it accessed their data. County staff have said they will physically cover any cameras that remain after the deadline expires.
The discovery has prompted scrutiny of surveillance systems and oversight. Police departments across America have been documented using Flock systems to track individuals for personal reasons unrelated to official investigations. Questions have arisen about how such technology is deployed and monitored when proper procedures may not be followed.
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Originally published by Ars Technica as “Florida cops say they don’t know who owns 11 unpermitted Flock cameras”.