Across the United States, automated license plate reader cameras operated by Flock Safety are recording vehicles as they travel on public roads.

These cameras can capture a vehicle's license plate, identifying characteristics, the time it passed a camera, and the camera's location. Flock says its technology does not use facial recognition or identify the person driving the vehicle. Law enforcement agencies use license plate readers for legitimate public-safety purposes, including finding stolen vehicles, locating missing or endangered people, and investigating crimes.

But a tool can have legitimate uses and still require meaningful limits.

Flock has built a vast network of license plate readers across the country. When information from cameras is searchable across jurisdictions, authorities can potentially use historical records to determine where a particular vehicle was observed at particular times. That raises serious questions about how much information should be collected about people who have never been accused or suspected of a crime.

Americans should not have to choose between public safety and reasonable safeguards for their privacy.

Communities deserve clear answers before surveillance technology becomes a permanent part of everyday life: Who can search this information? Under what circumstances? How long is it kept? Which other agencies can access it? What happens when the system is misused? And what independent oversight exists to make sure the rules are actually followed?

Flock says searches are logged, customers control access and sharing, and license-plate data is automatically deleted after the applicable retention period. The company has also moved toward shorter default retention periods for new customers. Those are important safeguards—but communities should not have to rely solely on a surveillance company's policies to protect their privacy.

We call on state and local governments using Flock Safety cameras to establish enforceable protections before deploying or expanding these systems. These protections should include clear limits on permissible searches, strict data-retention rules, restrictions on unnecessary sharing, meaningful audits for misuse, public reporting on how the systems are used, and transparent approval by elected officials before significant expansion.

Where access to historical vehicle-location information would intrude on protected privacy rights, law enforcement should obtain the legal authorization required by applicable law.

This petition is not asking police to abandon technology that can legitimately help solve crimes. It is asking government to draw a clear line between targeted investigations and unchecked surveillance.

Technology this powerful should not expand faster than the rules governing it.

Sign this petition to demand transparency, accountability, and enforceable privacy protections for the use of automated license plate readers in our communities.