“Flock’s probably heard of you”: Hawley sounds alarm over camera network
What do you think?
“If you haven’t heard of Flock, all I have to say is Flock’s probably heard of you.”
Missouri U.S. Senator Josh Hawley opened a Senate hearing Wednesday with that warning as lawmakers examined Flock Safety’s rapidly expanding network of automated license plate cameras.
Flock’s network includes about 120,000 cameras across 49 states and processes more than 20 billion vehicle reads each month.
The cameras can capture license plates along with information such as vehicle make, model, color, location and time.
Hawley said artificial intelligence has made those systems increasingly searchable, including by details such as vehicle damage, roof racks and bumper stickers.
He also raised concerns about whether users can reconstruct a vehicle’s movements over time.
“The overwhelming majority of drivers or other travelers who are surveilled here have done absolutely nothing wrong,” Hawley said.
Hawley launched an investigation into Flock in August, seeking information about how the company collects, retains and shares data.
He later expanded that investigation to Axon, Motorola Solutions and Verkada.
He has called for Congress to establish federal protections governing nationwide AI surveillance networks, although he has not introduced legislation specifically targeting Flock.
Hawley has separately sponsored the AI Accountability and Personal Data Protection Act with Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut.
The bill would create a federal legal claim involving certain uses, collection or exploitation of personal data without express prior consent. It was introduced in 2025 and referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Hawley framed Wednesday’s debate in broader constitutional terms.
"This is still the United States of America. It shouldn't be that when you walk out your door in the morning, you just have to agree in assent and accept the fact that you're going to be on camera morning, noon and night.”
He continued by describing people being tracked while taking children to school, attending church or going to the grocery store.
“That isn’t the free society that we’ve known,” Hawley said.
The issue has also surfaced in Joplin, where police said earlier this year that one officer violated department policy through improper use of the city’s Flock system.
The department said no other violations were found and it continues to use the technology.
Wednesday’s Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing was titled “Always Watching: Flock’s Nationwide AI Surveillance Network.”
