If you are unaware, Flock is a private company that uses automatic license plate recognition (ALPR), video surveillance, image recognition, and AI to run a mass surveillance system under contract with law enforcement agencies. Understandably, there has been public pushback on a system that currently scans over 20 billion cars per month across 49 US states. That pushback garnered national attention recently when Joel Feder, director of content and product at The Drive, found out firsthand just how invasive – and mistake-prone – the system can be. The veteran auto journalist and his wife were ambushed by law enforcement in a parking lot by police that had, with Flock's help, been tracking them for days in a media vehicle he was reviewing. Its license plate had been incorrectly flagged as stolen. Pushback is finally turning into big rejections by cities. Currently, 86 cities across the US have canceled their contracts with Flock over concerns about privacy, data, and accuracy. Most recently, Los Angeles, California, has halted its use of the Flock system, and the city is part of a growing list. But what about all the cameras still in use? As they say... there's an app for that. Pressure Is Mounting... Alongside Awareness The biggest resource currently available for concerned drivers and privacy advocates is DeFlock – an open-source project mapping license plate readers that's available through its website or phone app. DeFlock can show how many Flock cameras are in an area and where they are, and the app includes a tool that flags city meetings that have Flock on their agenda, so people can be notified, show up, and be heard. "The sticking point is around having very clear terms about who owns the data, what happens with the data once they collect it." - Dean Gialamas, LAPD