Another Bay Area city is set to wade into the growing controversy over Flock Safety cameras. Palo Alto said it’s preparing to audit its Flock camera system after learning data had been shared through a nationwide network despite local policies limiting who could access it. Law enforcement of ficials say the automated license plate readers (ALPRs) are critical to public safety, but critics argue they are a dangerous invasion of privacy and are abused by law enforcement. Palo Alto’s independent police auditor, the OIR Group, is expected to review the city’s rules around data sharing, outside access and data retention, as well as how the camera technology is being used. “Our audit is really intended to ensure that if there is misuse, that misuse is immediately identified through internal audits, through other guardrails, training, limitations as to who gets access to the information,” said Michael Gennaco with the OIR Group. The Palo Alto City Council is expected to finalize the scope of the independent audit Monday before deciding what, if anything, should change about the city’s use of the cameras. Brentwood Aug 17 Brentwood orders removal of HOA license plate readers approved by mistake Technology Aug 13 Surveillance company Flock moves to increase oversight after police misuse East Bay Jul 31 El Cerrito Flock cameras to be removed over next few weeks, police say The audit comes as a handful of other Bay Area communities rethink their relationship with Flock. Some cities have ended their contracts altogether, while others have decided to scale back use. In a statement, Palo Alto’s police chief said the cameras have provided a significant public safety benefit. “ALPR has been a tremendous investigative tool,” the statement read. “It has helped us solve cases, recover stolen vehicles and property, apprehend wanted individuals, and safely locate missing and suicidal persons. I am confident that our officers are using the technology responsibly and to good effect.” Critics of the cameras disagree. “We want to make sure that value isn’t overridden by the lack of trust in misuse of the data,” Gennaco said. In addressing some of the concerns surrounding how the data is used, Flock Safety CEO Garrett Langley said, “We don’t own the data. Our customers do. We don’t work with ICE. The customer chooses whom to share that data with. So I’ve found that once people see the truth, they go, ‘This feels like a very good trade-off. But at the end of the day, we have to find a society where safety and privacy can coexist.” Langley said he also supports regulation, including rules around data retention and accountability. “We give power to those who are entitled and ask them to keep us safe, and the accountability has to come with that,” he said. “When I look at regulation, I say there are a couple of things we have to get right. we have to decide how long this data should live, whether it’s seven days, 30 days or a year.” ...read more read less