Valeria Tokun Haga/THE RIDER
Flock Safety cameras have been popping up around the country, including in the Rio Grande Valley. These cameras are used by law enforcement to help track vehicles linked to crimes, according to a county official. However, some residents are concerned about their privacy and the potential misuse of the cameras.
The Valley has seen an increase in Flock Safety cameras in cities such as Edinburg and Brownsville, but some residents remain concerned about their use and how the data collected is handled.
Daniel Rodriguez, Cameron County Sheriff’s Office deputy, said the department began receiving the cameras in 2022.
“What they do is that they are placed in areas along … public roadways,” Rodriguez said. “What they will do is that they’ll scan the license plates of vehicles that pass through them.”
According to the Flock Safety website, “Flock Safety is the leading safety technology platform, helping communities thrive by taking a proactive approach to crime prevention and security.”
Flock Group Inc., founded in 2017, has a reach of over 6,000 communities across 49 states in partnership with thousands of law enforcement agencies, according to the website.
Rodriguez said that the Cameron County Sheriff’s Office does share the data with some Cameron County police departments.
“We share the data that is collected by these cameras with these other agencies, [like] Brownsville, San Benito and the city of Harlingen,” he said.
The Rider emailed the Brownsville Police Department and the City of Edinburg for a comment. As of press time, the Brownsville PD declined to respond and the City of Edinburg was unavailable for comment.
Valeria Tokun Haga/THE RIDER
In an Instagram poll conducted by The Rider on Aug. 31, 61 students answered the question, “Should we have Flock Safety cameras in our cities?” 85% of students answered no and some gave a reason why.
Gustavo Sanchez, a history junior who participated in the poll, wrote, “We’ve seen across the United States, much law enforcement [agencies] have been using [Flock cameras] for their own personal gain, it also allows mass surveillance into the population which is warrantless and seems unconstitutional.”
Brittany Castro, an English graduate student who also participated in the poll, wrote “There’s been misuse of officers using Flock camera data for their own personal use; collection of data without permission or warrant; and violation of privacy…creating more harm than good or safety within said communities.”
Abel Sanchez, a junior marketing student, said he believes cities should not have Flock cameras.
“I believe it would go above and beyond by violating people’s privacy whenever they start heading home, or they start getting to their jobs,” Sanchez said. “Maybe their information could be spread out there.”
Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s spokesperson, Andrew Mahaleris, announced the governor paused all state agency funding for Flock cameras, according to an Aug. 28 The Texas Tribune article.
The funding pause was due to privacy concerns and misuse by some law enforcement agencies in the state, according to the article.
“To the extent that cities get any funding for those cameras, most of it comes from the federal government,” Mahaleris said. “To the extent any funding comes from Texas agencies, those agencies are clarifying that those funds cannot be used for Flock cameras.”
As of press time, the Cameron County Sheriff’s Office has not given a statement about the pause.
