Flock Safety, facing mounting scrutiny over privacy and security failures related to its AI-powered license plate cameras, is cutting its workforce by 18 percent, or roughly 270 employees.
Reuters reports that the departures affect employees across the company and follow a voluntary buyout program. They’re set to take effect at the end of October. The move comes a month after Wired reported that Flock had been asking some workers to leave voluntarily to avoid mandatory layoffs.
Flock spokesperson Paris Lewbel gave a statement addressing the staff reduction. “Flock recently offered current employees a generous Voluntary Separation Program as part of our efforts to position the company for its next phase of growth. This was a voluntary program, not a layoff, and reflects our continued focus on building a strong, sustainable business for the future,” Lewbel said.
Lewbel declined to say whether CEO Garrett Langley or other executives took pay cuts as part of the program.
Flock has installed more than 100,000 license plate reading cameras across the United States. The resulting surveillance network has drawn sustained criticism from privacy advocates and, increasingly, from police departments themselves. Dozens of police officers have been arrested, fired, or forced to resign for abusing their access to Flock’s system, and the Los Angeles Police Department is among the agencies that have let their Flock contracts expire or lapse over privacy and civil liberties concerns.
Breitbart News previously reported that Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) is targeting Flock abuse with new legislation:
The bill, called the Stop Flock Abuse Act, targets automated license plate readers, cameras capable of recording a vehicle’s make, model and color. It would tighten rules on how the data those cameras collect can be stored, secured and searched.
Under the measure, local governments would be barred from selling or sharing vehicle data gathered by the cameras. Agencies would have to permanently delete driver data within 10 days unless a criminal investigation is underway. Surveillance networks would also be banned from using facial recognition technology. Searches would require written approval, and an audit log would have to be preserved to guard against unauthorized or rogue searches. The bill further requires that data be encrypted and kept within the United States.
Read more at Reuters here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of AI, free speech, and online censorship.