MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee law enforcement agencies have launched publicly-accessible databases in an effort to offer more insight into their use of Flock cameras amid growing concerns over privacy and the technology’s misuse by local authorities and Flock Safety.
Two “transparency portals” display real-time data for the total number of searches made by the Milwaukee Police Department and the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office over the last 30 days, including what type of offenses officers made searches for — categories like drugs, reckless driving and wanted for arrest. As of Sunday evening, the MPD portal showed 1,008 searches and the MCSO portal shows 145 searches.
The portals also track how many “hotlist reads” the automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras make in 30 days, which match the license plate scans to vehicles on various law enforcement databases for crimes like stolen cars or amber alerts. According to the portals, those database sources include the National Crime Information Center, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and the Wisconsin Department of Justice.
These public portals come less than a week after Milwaukee leaders announced changes in the works to restrict how MPD can use Flock cameras and monitor future use, which MPD alluded to in a press release about its portal:
“This effort underscores the commitments MPD made in partnership with the Mayor to establish appropriate guardrails for the use of this technology while providing greater public understanding of how Flock ALPR technology is used to support public safety.”
Over the past week, a growing list of other law enforcement agencies in Southeast Wisconsin have announced plans to eliminate the use of Flock cameras entirely, with some switching to competitor cameras.
Calls for contract cancellations and the complete removal of Flock technology from Milwaukee were loud at the city’s Fire and Police Commission meeting on Thursday. Dozens spoke against the cameras entirely, including representatives from the League of Women Voters of Milwaukee County, American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin, Black Leaders Organizing for Communities and the Milwaukee Turners.
“I think Mayor Johnson’s resolution is a band aid on a gushing bullet wound,” one resident said during public comment. “Flock’s newest thing is drones. So when you’re going into a contract with Flock and you’re buying Flock cameras, how do we know it’s not going to go to the next thing?”
Other Milwaukee government leaders are joining opposition to Flock use, including Milwaukee County Supervisor Justin Bielinski, who chairs the Committee on Judiciary, Law Enforcement, and General Services. In a press release, Bielinski raised concerns about how Flock Safety itself remains a privacy threat even if local agencies take steps to prevent misuse:
“Even if you have confidence in the Sheriff’s Department’s use of Flock, the question remains: do we trust Flock itself with this information?”
The MPD portal shows there are 38 Flock cameras across the city. As of Sunday, that data didn’t appear to be available on the MCSO portal for the county.
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