Full transcript
officials are weighing in on growing
concerns over flock surveillance camera systems
all across
New York.
This comes
after several police officers in Savannah,
Georgia
were fired over the misuse
of the license plate camera reader equipment.
To win your sides,
Maura Vaughn is here now in studio to.
Explain how these cameras are used
and also there's some concerns over privacy.
Maura,
Courtney,
there are,
and according to De Flock,
an organization that tracks automatic license plate readers,
there are hundreds of ALPRs across Western New York,
but some local communities say law enforcement
is improperly sharing private citizens' data.
There's no reason to have blanket wholesale access to
all of the millions of license plate reads.
New York officials speaking out tonight about flock cameras amidst a countrywide
debate on privacy concerns of the automatic license plate reader technology.
Daniel Schwartz works for the New York Civil Liberties Union.
He says the scope of data Flock Safety can collect,
retain,
and share is the issue.
As
we see
the surveillance impact these technologies.
Have whether they're being used to track
someone at a protest,
and
I think we're seeing a lot of instances
of federal overreach where the government uses them
to go against people they disagree with.
On the other hand,
former Department of Homeland Security senior Special Agent Dr.
Stephen McMartin says license plate readers have been around for decades.
It's the technology that has changed,
the
gathering of data.
And sharing among law enforcement agencies between states,
etc.
and even between nations has always existed.
This is a new technology.
It's,
it's,
it's
gathering information differently.
According to the company's website,
Flock safety cameras are designed to help recognize
license plates to help prevent and solve crime.
I think it'll be a great help and asset to law enforcement again,
finding a lost child,
finding a car that's involved in hitting around,
finding a car that's been involved in a bank.
Robbery.
The concern for some citizens across the US
whether officials are tracking data for other purposes.
We also have seen them heavily being used by
law enforcement officers themselves to track
girlfriends,
ex-partners,
other women that they encounter on the streets.
So
a lot of misuse and abuse by this technology.
Officers could always go into systems.
Uh,
and look up license plates that were parked in their ex-spouse's driveways.
Is that a misuse of the system?
Absolutely.
Were there safeties and are there safeties and
technologies built into those systems to prevent that,
to detect it,
and,
and then processes
used
to punish
the offender?
Yes.
There is no statewide law regulating flock cameras.
Legislation has been introduced in Albany that would reduce
the storage of ALPR tracking data from 30 days
to 48 hours.
On your side in the studio,
Maura Vaughan,
Channel 2 News.