Under Fire, Flock CEO Pushes 'Compromise' on Surveillance

Garrett Langley, CEO of Flock Safety, asserts that the nation must establish a "compromise" that effectively balances privacy with public safety.

During a recent Fox News interview, Langley underscored this principle, stating, "When people talk about just one of these, privacy or safety, they’re prioritizing the wrong thing, and what we have to prioritize as a country is compromise." He further posed the critical question, "How do we have our safety, and how do we balance privacy?"

Langley's appearance on Fox News is one of several interviews he has given as his company faces a growing public outcry. These concerns revolve around the potential misuse of Flock's surveillance cameras, drones, and license plate recognition technology.

These concerns are not merely theoretical. The Washington Post recently uncovered 46 instances where police officers allegedly used Flock technology for unauthorized purposes, including stalking their wives, girlfriends, or ex-partners.

After hearing an interview with one of the alleged victims, Langley expressed remorse to CBS News, stating, "I apologize. It kills me that she went through that." Concurrently, he maintained, "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."

Mirroring the bipartisan opposition seen with data centers, both Democratic and Republican politicians have begun to critically examine Flock Safety.

On the left, Michigan's Democratic Senate nominee, Abdul El-Sayed, recently criticized his opponent, Mike Rogers, for supporting "this mass proliferation of Flock cameras, any and everywhere, watching your every move to collect information without you even noticing." Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders also publicly stated, "STOP AI MASS SURVEILLANCE. STOP FLOCK."

From the right, three House Republicans recently introduced legislation aimed at prohibiting the federal government from acquiring automated surveillance systems that employ facial recognition, biometric IDs, or license plate recognition, specifically mentioning "including a Flock Safety camera."

In response to the mounting criticism, Flock has implemented some changes, including reducing the default data retention period from 30 days to seven days and requiring a case code for data access. However, both measures can be circumvented; for example, law enforcement can extend data retention by utilizing a setting called "Evidence Mode."

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) reacted to Flock's announced changes by stating, "While Flock has not shortened the default retention period to the ACLU’s recommended 48 hours, its proposal 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."

Langley himself has advocated for state regulators to "pass bills that make [the illegal use of Flock data] a criminal offense." He reiterated during his Fox News interview that despite the company's implemented changes, "Today, it is too often that in Flock and in other technologies, there’s no regulation. There’s no accountability, and we think that’s wrong."

These critical issues are expected to be a focal point when TechCrunch interviews Langley on-stage at our Disrupt conference in October.