Wisconsin communities end contracts with surveillance company Flock over privacy, misuse concerns
Wisconsin communities end contracts with surveillance company Flock over privacy, misuse concerns
https://www.wpr.org/news/wisconsin-communities-end-contracts-flock
Publish Date: 2026-06-03 17:37:00
Source Domain: www.wpr.org
Communities around Wisconsin are choosing to part ways with AI-powered law enforcement cameras made by private surveillance company Flock.
Flock cameras can read license plates, but they can also register car color, make and model, stickers, damage and other identifying features. That information can be uploaded to a database that can be accessed by law enforcement and federal agencies nationwide.
Last year, at least 221 Wisconsin law enforcement agencies used Flock cameras, according to an August 2025 investigation by the Wisconsin Examiner. Since then, Dane County, Sturgeon Bay, Oshkosh and Fitchburg, as well as others, have cut ties with the Atlanta-based company, which also makes first responder drones and gunshot detection systems.
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People in those communities have objected over privacy concerns and the possibility that data collected by the cameras could be used by federal agencies, like Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Other critics worry individual law enforcement agents will abuse the technology. Earlier this year, a Milwaukee police officer was charged with misconduct after using the Flock system to keep tabs on someone he was dating and their ex-partner. In response, the department made changes that limited the number of officers who have access to the system.
“This case is exactly why Flock builds our technology to include immutable, transparent audit trails, so rare cases of potential abuse can be detected, investigated, and addressed,” a Flock spokesperson said in a statement to WPR.
In April, the Oshkosh Common Council discontinued its contract with Flock because it felt the company had been…
