The Latest News about Flock Safety in Medway, Massachusetts, and the USA!

News

News About Medway and the Petition

On Tuesday September 1, 403 Medway voters signed a Petition to ban Flock Safety and any other ALPR’s in Medway with proposed warrant articles for Town Meeting to change the General Bylaws and the Zoning Bylaws.  The change to the General Bylaws will ban the use by Police and the Zoning Bylaws will ban the use by private companies.  The petition was submitted to the Town Clerk on September 2 and 100 signatures were validated (this is the the required amount).  The Warrant for the Fall Town Meeting is still being finalized but it does include the 2 articles from the Petition.  At the Select Board Meeting on September 21 the Select Board and Town Manager decided the Police Chief could continue the Flock contract. You can watch the video here .  Medway Police Chief Kingsbury starts speaking at about 1:00 and Michael Fahey speaks at 1:35 followed by Fred Hopke.  Please listen to Select Board members  Todd Allesandri and Glenn Trindade when speaking with Michael and Fred.  They do a great job repeating Flock Safety’s talking points.  The next meeting for the warrant articles will be on October 13 with the Planning Board.   People who are concerned about Flock Safety in Medway are encouraged to watch the meeting in person or attend online.

Recent News about Flock in Massachusetts

Holyoke

Braintree

  • Boston 25 Investigates reported at 3:38 p.m. today, September 17, that former Braintree police detective Mark Sherrick allegedly used Braintree’s Flock system to track his ex-girlfriend’s license plate more than 1,000 times. Boston 25 obtained court records and an internal Flock audit showing 1,049+ searches of one plate.

    Braintree confirmed that its investigation found the former detective misused police resources, including license-plate queries, for a personal matter unrelated to a legitimate investigation. He retired on April 2, 2025 while the town was investigating his conduct and is now facing a criminal harassment charge. The alleged Flock tracking began around August 20, 2024.  https://www.boston25news.com/news/local/25-investigates-former-braintree-officer-accused-using-police-technology-track-ex-girlfriend/QX77FW77HJDZ5BI6WCP7MCJQUM/

Waltham

Boston

Boston

Wilmington

Hopkinton

Quincy

Bellingham

Framingham

Cambridge & Waltham

Other Recent Massachusetts Cancellations:

Recent News about Flock in the USA

An Audit of Flock Safety in Kansas City Uncovers Massive Scale of Surveillance

A striking Kansas City audit was published this morning. KCUR found that the Kansas City, Kansas, Flock database was queried nearly 1.1 million times during one 30-day period. Houston Police, Dallas Police and the California Highway Patrol together made roughly 198,000 searches of Kansas City data during that period, while Kansas City police themselves performed far fewer searches. KCUR also reports that nearby Parkville, Missouri suspended its 14 Flock cameras after two town-hall meetings.   https://www.kcur.org/news/2026-09-21/flock-data-from-kansas-city-kansas-got-searched-1-million-times-in-6-months-whos-looking

Flock Offers Employees Buyouts as Customers Flee

Friday, September 18, WIRED reported that Flock Safety has launched a voluntary employee-separation/buyout program as the company deals with customer losses, higher expenses and the nationwide backlash over its surveillance network.

Flock has roughly 1,500 employees. According to an internal email obtained by WIRED:

  • employees can apply for the voluntary severance package through October 2;
  • Flock expects to approve a majority of applicants;
  • decisions are expected around October 9;
  • most participating employees would leave around October 29.

WIRED reports, citing people familiar with the company’s finances, that lost/non-renewed contracts could leave Flock short of its revenue goals, while widespread camera vandalism has increased expenses. One source told WIRED that without the voluntary program, layoffs would likely otherwise be necessary. Flock did not immediately respond to WIRED’s request for comment on the story.

WIRED also notes that Flock raised funding this year at a valuation exceeding $8 billion, so the buyout program does not by itself mean the company is in financial distress or failing. It does, however, provide evidence that the current customer backlash is having an operational impact inside the company.  https://www.wired.com/story/flock-is-offering-voluntary-buyouts-to-employees/

 

Red and Blue America Have Found Something to Agree on: Flock Cameras Must Go

The Wall Street Journal has a major national Flock story today documenting the increasingly bipartisan opposition to the cameras. It highlights both progressive Asheville, North Carolina, and conservative Oconee County, South Carolina, which recently voted to stop using Flock. The Journal characterizes the backlash as increasingly crossing conventional partisan lines.  A national backlash against AI-enabled license-plate readers is uniting Trump country and progressive strongholds alike. ‘Nobody wants to be surveilled…doesn’t matter what your political leaning is.’ https://www.wsj.com/us-news/red-and-blue-america-have-found-something-to-agree-on-flock-cameras-must-go-765cd0b2

Hackers got inside a Flock Camera.  Its Data Shows how the System Really Works

WIRED and 404 Media reported today that hackers physically removed a Flock camera and extracted much of its stored data and software. Their examination found about 1.6 million images associated with roughly 50,200 vehicles over about 21 days. A normal passing vehicle generated around 28 images, with some producing more than 100. The reporting also provides new detail about how the camera detects motion and objects before sending selected information to Flock’s servers. This should be distinguished from a remote compromise of Flock’s national cloud network—the researchers had physical possession of a camera. Flock said unauthorized tampering is illegal and encouraged security researchers to use established disclosure channels.  https://www.wired.com/story/hackers-flock-camera-data-shows-how-system-works/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

The Flock-Off Act (Federal Funding Ban)

Police1: Bipartisan ‘Flock-Off Act’ would block federal funding for ALPR systems This article details the bipartisan House bill (H.R. 10221) introduced by Representatives Thomas Massie and Eric Burlison. The legislation would prohibit federal agencies and grant recipients from using federal money to purchase or operate ALPR systems and biometric surveillance cameras. Read on Police1

Gadget Review: Massie’s Flock-Off Act Would Cut Federal Camera Funding This piece explains that under the proposed bill, agencies would have 180 days to decommission systems purchased with federal funds or repay the U.S. Treasury, with narrow exceptions made only for border security and toll collection. Read on Gadget Review

Restrictions in Florida and Texas

The Record: Where the backlash against Flock Safety is having the biggest impact This report covers how the Florida Department of Transportation banned ALPRs on state highways shortly after Governor Ron DeSantis publicly criticized the technology for violating citizens’ privacy. It also covers Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s decision to block state agencies from using public money to fund the cameras. Read on The Record

The Next Web: Florida and Texas both moved against Flock cameras in a single week This article highlights that the Texas funding freeze followed an investigation revealing a state agency used roughly $30 million from an auto insurance fee to buy a sprawling network of cameras without lawmakers realizing it. Read on The Next Web

MLQ.ai: Florida orders Flock camera removals as Texas halts state funding This story provides a breakdown of the Florida mandate, which requires local agencies to remove covered devices from state rights-of-way within 30 days. It also notes that local Texas governments must now decide if they will continue to fund the cameras locally without state assistance. Read on MLQ.ai

Senator Josh Hawley’s Investigation

The Next Web: Florida and Texas both moved against Flock cameras in a single week This article mentions that Senator Josh Hawley opened a Senate investigation into Flock Safety, giving the company a deadline to hand over internal documents. Read on The Next Web

Missouri Senator Accuses Flock Safety of Unprecedented Surveillance This video provides local news coverage of Senator Josh Hawley publicly accusing the company of building a national surveillance network during his subcommittee hearing. Watch on YouTube

When someone tells you that ‘if you are doing nothing wrong,then you have nothing to worry about’, then you know that is the time to worry.

The technology may be new, but the issue of protecting Privacy is not

John Adams, Massachusetts Constitution, Article XIV, 1780

“Every subject has a right to be secure from all unreasonable searches, and seizures”

Fourth Ammendment, US Constitution

“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”

George Mason, Virginia Declaration of Rights, 1776

“general warrants...are grievous and oppressive and ought not to be granted.” -George Mason, Virginia Declaration of Rights, 1776

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