October 16, 2025

Wyden Slams Surveillance Tech Company for Ineffective Protections for Oregonians Against Abuses by Federal Agencies and Out-of-State Law Enforcement

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., slammed surveillance tech company Flock for failing to meet its pledge to protect Oregonians against immigration and abortion-related searches by out-of-state law enforcement agencies and for deceiving state and local law enforcement customers about its sharing of their data with the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies.

After troubling press reports surfaced about law enforcement agencies accessing Flock’s data to crack down on immigration and target women under state laws criminalizing abortion, the company announced that it would provide additional privacy protections for Oregonians. However, continuing oversight by Wyden revealed that the software filters implemented by Flock are easy to circumvent and lack meaningful privacy protections.

“At the urging of concerned constituents, I conducted further oversight and have determined that Flock cannot live up to its commitment to protect the privacy and security of Oregonians. Abuse of Flock cameras is inevitable, and Flock has made it clear it takes no responsibility to prevent or detect that,” Wyden wrote in his letter to Flock Chief Executive Officer Garrett Langley.

Flock deceived its state and local law enforcement customers about sharing data with immigration enforcement agencies. News reports earlier this year revealed that Flock gave U.S. Customs Border Protection (CBP) access to the company’s systems. Wyden's investigation revealed that additional federal agencies, including Homeland Security Investigations (the investigations arm of ICE), the Secret Service and Naval Criminal Investigative Service, also had access to Flock cameras. Finally, Flock revealed that it does not proactively audit how its cameras are used, how data is searched, or whether agencies are complying with requirements to state valid reasons to search its database.

“I now believe that abuses of your product are not only likely but inevitable, and that Flock is unable and uninterested in preventing them,” Wyden wrote. “In my view, local elected officials can best protect their constituents from the inevitable abuses of Flock cameras by removing Flock from their communities.”

The city of Eugene recently voted to turn off its Flock cameras as it continues to evaluate the company.

Flock operates the largest network of surveillance cameras in America, including having contacts with more than 5,000 police departments. Flock cameras store billions of vehicle scans every month in its database, allowing law enforcement agencies to search not only by plate number but also make, model, or even bumper sticker.

The text of the letter is here.