VICTORY! On 2.23.26 Lynnwood City Council voted unanimously to cancel the contract with Flock.
Post Vote
As of 02.23.26, Lynnwood’s City Council voted unanimously to terminate the contract with Flock. This page will remain up as a resource to other DeFlock movements around the country. See our “Getting Started” page for tips on how to start the push in your city. Please feel free to contact us if you need any help or advice. We will monitor the locations of the cameras to ensure they are removed. Upon removal, photos of the clean locations will be provided on the map page, corresponding with updates to the Open Street Map database.
What is Flock?
Flock is a privately owned company that operates a nationwide network of Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR) cameras. Flock is building a database of where everyone travels, accessible without a warrant, regardless of whether you have committed a crime. They have been used by ICE[source] in violation of Washington law. They have been used to track women[source] who sought reproductive healthcare. They have been used to stalk partners of law enforcement[source][source][source]
Lynnwood Police have made promises that:
- This network would not be used for immigration enforcement. Due to misconfiguration, this network was used for exactly that. [source] Furthermore, records request 25-1782 revealed that between the use of the network for immigration searches in violation of Washington’s 2019 “Keep Washington Working Act” in early July, and LPD’s public statements at the end of October; only after a journalist revealed this unlawful use, they made no attempt to contact Council or the Mayor. [source] LPD swept this violation of the law under the rug.
- Searches have to be cross referenced with a case number. Network audits find this is not being enforced. [source] Furthermore, records request 25-1785 [source] revealed that “It does not specify in department policy that the user must include an incident or case number.” The foundation of this promise is a misstatement of department policy.
Latest News
- Lynnwood becomes one of the 1st in the state to terminate Flock contract
- Lynnwood clips Flock’s wings: Contract canceled with surveillance camera company – Fox13
- Flock CEO Goes Ballistic on Critics as More Americans Question Mass Driver Surveillance – ACLU
- Washington lawmakers push for privacy regulations on Flock cameras – Komo News
- Controversial Flock license plate readers shut off by another Eastern WA city – Tri City Herald
Wastes Your Tax Dollars
Lynnwood has entered into a 2-year contract valued at $171,153.50 to operate 25 Flock cameras[source]. During the initial contract, a grant of $132,700 was provided, leaving taxpayers responsible for paying $38,453.50 to be warrantlessly tracked at all times. Building infrastructure on grants leaves us vulnerable to a budget spike once the grant expires.
A Berkeley Police Accountability Board found that ALPRs “…did not result in a reduction of crime generally or auto theft specifically, during the period measured.[source]“
Investing in housing, healthcare, and community programs is what improves the health of our community, not invasive surveillance that watches everyone without a warrant.
Your Location Data is Not Safe from Misuse and Sharing
Police claim our data is safe, but Flock’s system is designed for mass sharing. The data can be saved indefinitely and shared with hundreds of outside agencies, including ICE, putting our immigrant neighbors at direct risk.
- A recent ruling by Skagit County Superior Court[source] finds that the footage from Flock are public records. This precedent means that anyone can dump the entire network for broad swaths of time and use it for any purpose.
- Lynnwood’s Flock network has been used by out of state agencies for immigration related searches, breaking promises made by LPD to City Council in January[source].
- A 2023 report found that ICE accessed license plate data from sanctuary cities, undermining state law and local trust[source].
- Federal agencies have been found to use logins provided by local law enforcement to circumvent restrictions on federal information sharing[source].
- Similar systems have been hacked, resulting in exposure of their databases[source].
- Many cities are ending their contracts specifically to concerns that data will be used against our neighbors[source].
Dragnet Surveillance; a Legal Risk
The Eastern District of Virginia has ruled that a Fourth Amendment lawsuit can proceed against Flock’s warrantless surveillance[source].
Flock and any other ALPR (automated license plate reader) lose accuracy in conditions of poor visibility. Thankfully, it never rains or gets foggy in Lynnwood.
Families have been pulled over at gunpoint due to incorrect readings[source], resulting in 7-figure lawsuits. By installing Flock in Lynnwood, we are using tax dollars to install a system that may result in litigation due to its mistakes, for which taxpayers would be responsible.