How to avoid Flock cameras, legally

Start with where the cameras are

Start with documented locations, then use the identification guide to understand what a device might be. Appearance alone does not confirm its manufacturer or whether it is operating.

The FlockDetour live map shows documented Flock Safety cameras and other license plate readers in the United States and Canada. Search a city or street, or tap the locate button, then select the Flock Safety filter to show records attributed to that vendor. DeFlock also maps community-reported readers at deflock.org. Coverage varies by area.

Open the FlockDetour live map · How to find Flock cameras near you · What a Flock camera looks like

Compare the routes available for your trip

Enter a start and a destination on the free FlockDetour web map. The planner shows the fastest route and any available alternatives with travel estimates and mapped-camera counts. Those alternatives depend on the roads and routing provider; the web planner does not promise a route with fewer cameras.

A longer route may pass the same number of mapped readers, more readers, or fewer. Our dated three-route comparison found one lower-count option and two unchanged results. These are modeled encounters with mapped records, not evidence that a camera captured your vehicle or that an unmarked road has no cameras.

In the FlockDetour apps for iPhone and Android, Pro adds the Balanced and Fewer cameras modes and turn-by-turn navigation. Camera-aware modes still cannot guarantee a lower count for every trip. Check each store listing for platform-specific features and current prices. DeFlock has a free web route planner, and FlockHopper advertises free camera-aware navigation with optional in-app purchases.

Plan a route on the live map · Apps that show Flock cameras, compared · Three route comparisons and their limits

Why no map shows every camera

Camera maps combine documented observations and published records, often including volunteer contributions to OpenStreetMap. They can miss new, mobile, removed or incorrectly located devices. A stretch of road with no pins may simply be unmapped.

Agency transparency portals can add context, but an agency total and a map's geographic count may cover different devices, boundaries and dates. FlockDetour's agency directory uses a historical July 2023–April 2024 portal dataset; follow the original source for current information before comparing counts.

If you find an unmapped camera, the contributor guide explains how to document it in OpenStreetMap. Projects that import those records can pick up the correction on their own schedules. A report submitted to FlockDetour is separate from a public OpenStreetMap edit.

Agency and state directory · Add a camera to OpenStreetMap

Leave the plate and the cameras alone

Don't cover, tint or alter your license plate. New York made selling plate covers illegal in September 2024 and raised the fine for obscuring a plate to between $100 and $500. Georgia law requires plates to be clearly displayed.

Leave the cameras alone, too. They belong to a police department, a business or Flock Safety, and FlockDetour will never advise blocking, moving or disabling one. Where towns have removed cameras, it happened through city councils and public records.

Is it legal to avoid Flock cameras? · What towns have done about it

Related guides

DeFlock, FlockHopper and FlockDetour compared · Is it legal to avoid Flock cameras? · How to find Flock cameras near you · All guides · Live camera map · Get the app