From Newsgroup: alt.privacy

The CEO of surveillance technology company Flock Safety apologized
Thursday for instances where its data was misused by law enforcement
officers and discussed changes the company is rolling out to its
systems.

Following a Washington Post report that police officers were accused in
46 cases of improperly using access to Flock's license plate camera
network, in some instances allegedly stalking women, Flock CEO Garrett
Langley said he had listened to one woman's interview Thursday morning.

"I apologize," Langley said in an interview with CBS News. "It kills me
that she went through that."

Asked if he took enough responsibility soon enough when it came to the accusations of abuses, Langley said hindsight is "a brutal tool."

"Hindsight tends to be very clear," he said. "And I think, of course, we
could have done more earlier, and we listen, and we learn, and we'll
continue to move forward because until everyone has an equal level of
safety in this country, we have work to do."

Langley still defended his company and the service it provides law
enforcement agencies with its network of 120,000 cameras around the
country that record license plate numbers and other details from
vehicles that pass by.

"It gets to this issue that when you are given power, which many people
are, particularly in law enforcement, you should have higher standards
of accountability," Langley said. "And so, I don't think that Flock
created police abuse. I think we're the first company to ever shine a
light on it and build the tools to find it."

Among the changes the company announced Thursday, Flock is reducing the
default period of time data will be retained from 30 days to seven days. However, if data is tied to an investigation that needs more time, it
can be preserved in a setting it calls "Evidence Mode."

The company also said every search of its data will now require a case
code to be entered beforehand. But that can be overridden in an
emergency, like if a child goes missing.

Flock's customers can also limit which types of offenses outside
agencies can search for in its system, like homicide, arson or assault,
the company said.

By the end of the year, all of Flock's law enforcement customers will
also have to turn on a tool that aims to flag abnormal search behavior
and lock out people until the searches are reviewed by an administrator.
The company says about a third of agencies have already turned on the
tool, which rolled out earlier this year.

The American Civil Liberties Union has criticized Flock, accusing the
company of violating people's privacy rights. In a statement Thursday,
the ACLU said the company's plan to reduce how long data is retained
"may be a step in the right direction."

"Whether this is a real change or just another Flock PR move, however,
will depend on how its 'Evidence Mode' operates," the ACLU said.

In the CBS News interview, Langley was asked if he had a message to any
officer who was considering using Flock to follow someone who's not part
of an investigation.

"You will get caught, plain and simple. If you try to use this tool
illegally, you will get caught," he said. "And I hope that state
regulators pass bills that make that a criminal offense. It should not
just be a termination. It should be a criminal offense if you abuse your power."

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/flock-ceo-apologizes-surveillance-technology -abused-company-changes/?intcid=CNR-02-0623
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