A journalist filming a Flock Safety camera installation in Milton, Georgia, was pulled over by police after a company employee called 911. The incident, reported by Yahoo News, highlights the tension between public observation of surveillance technology and corporate privacy concerns.
Drivers often encounter automated license plate readers (ALPRs) without knowing who installed them or why. This event shows what happens when someone tries to document the process.
Why Did Police Stop a Reporter for Filming?
Brendan Keefe, an investigative journalist, was documenting the expansion of ALPR networks when he saw a technician upgrading a camera near his home. Keefe, in a marked news van and wearing a press placard, began filming the installation from a distance.
According to Keefe, the technician quickly left the site. Keefe then followed the technician's vehicle at a legal distance to another public installation site.
During this time, the Flock employee called 911, claiming he was being followed and harassed. Milton Police Department officers then stopped Keefe.
- Keefe was pulled over by three police cruisers.
- He was detained for approximately 17 minutes.
- Police determined he had not broken any laws and released him without charges.
Keefe noted the irony of a company that tracks public movements calling the police when observed publicly. This situation raises questions for drivers about their ability to document public installations of surveillance technology without intervention.
What Does This Mean for Drivers and ALPR Data?
This incident is not isolated. A previous report mentioned police intervention when YouTubers filmed outside a Flock Safety warehouse in Smyrna, Georgia. These events demonstrate a pattern of the company reacting strongly to being filmed in public.
When asked about citizen options to avoid ALPR tracking, Keefe summarized a key challenge: "You can if you want to opt out of society, but Flock effectively opted out of us recording them by calling 911." This suggests that avoiding ALPR tracking often means limiting movement in areas covered by these cameras.
In response to public and political pressure, including an inquiry from U.S. Senator Josh Hawley into data collection, Flock Safety recently announced new privacy guardrails in mid-August 2026. These changes include:
- A strict 7-day data retention period for ALPR data.
- Mandatory multi-factor authentication for police logins.
However, digital privacy advocates point out that the 7-day limit applies only to new law enforcement customers. Older systems may still retain data for longer periods. Drivers interested in learning more about how ALPRs work and where they are located can visit our /learn page or check our /map.
The incident in Milton highlights the power imbalance in modern surveillance. While the public's movements are tracked, attempts to observe the technology's deployment can lead to police involvement. We continue to monitor developments in ALPR policy and deployment.