this is a story swarm camerasSomething you’ve never heard of. Swarm cameras are sold to gullible people and complicit people as simple “license plate readers”. Flock cameras are designed to keep an eye on cars. Of course, for safety. Because crime. But there are too many of them.
the principle is it,
Flock Safety, a fast-growing startup that helps law enforcement locate vehicles with fixed cameras, has released several new features to make it easier for users to locate vehicles of interest.
Overall, the move moves the company’s software toward giving police the ability to search vehicles using any camera they have — a security camera on an ATM, a homeowner’s Ring doorbell, even a photo taken on someone’s cellphone. The company’s new Advanced Search package — which costs between $2,500 and $5,000 a year, depending on how many Flock Safety cameras the agency operates — includes a feature that allows users to upload a photo of a vehicle from any source and then search to see if any of the company’s cameras have seen it.
It doesn’t just search for license plates. The company has designed its software to recognize vehicle characteristics such as paint color, vehicle type and specific features such as roof rack.
Details are in the name: Swarm SecurityBecause “keeping you safe” is the reason for every intrusion, As a police-oriented site puts (Note: “You” here is the police):
7/10 crimes are committed using vehicles. Capture vehicle details needed to track clues and solve the crime. Flock Safety’s patented Vehicle Fingerprint™ technology lets you search based on vehicle make, color, type, license plate, license plate condition, missing plates, covered plates, paper plates and unique vehicle details like roof rack, bumper sticker and more.
The breadth of reach is astonishing. The herd captures whatever it sees. Everything. Not just vehicles. People. Everything.
Think this is a problem? So did a judge in Washington state, who ruled that the sweepstakes was so Its data is a public recordPublic means open to everyone,
This has upset so many cities that the company has started losing contracts.
Across the United States, thousands of automated license plate readers silently keep an eye on the roads. some people go inside police cruiser [note: unrelated link, but a helluva story]Others sit on telephone poles or hang over intersections as cars whiz past. They record everything they encounter, even if the car is driving.
It’s a vast, largely invisible network that most people don’t think twice about until it makes the news.
Well, according to a recent ruling by a judge, it turns out that those photos are public data. And as soon as the decision came, local officials rushed to turn off the cameras.
The story behind the case is interesting:
The decision stems from a civil case involving the cities of Sedro-Woolley and Stanwood, Washington. The two sued to block public records requests filed by Oregon resident Jose Rodriguez. He works in Walla Walla and is trying to access the images as part of a broader investigation into government surveillance.
Judge Elizabeth Yost Niedzewski sided with Rodriguez, concluding that the data “qualifies as a public record under the Public Records Act.”
This decision caused both cities to immediately deactivate their flock systems. Swarm cameras are installed on public roads and they continuously take photographs of passing vehicles, including occupants, even if a crime is suspected.
Concerns about privacy are at the heart of the matter. City attorneys defending Rodriguez’s lawsuit said releasing the data would compromise the privacy of innocents. But they didn’t see any problem with it Government Keeping the same data.
This leads us to the central problem of today’s surveillance situation. No one operating a camera wants to be under surveillance. For example, one reason city officials object to releasing herd data is that the data recorded includes them themselves. Cameras are on them too; They can also be tracked. everything means Everything For these cameras everywhere.
Rich people want to hide their crimes (Hello, friends of Mr. Epstein). ICE wants to hide its thugs. Billionaires think you don’t care about their affairs.
Still they want to have every right deep within youSee ICE agents above, Then consider what one use of the herd is Help ICE do what it does By making the whole world as naked as possible.
Or consider a trick used by cities like Eugene, OR Hide swarm cameras from view So that they can record you without your surveillance.
Or till then Congress had no problem with domestic spying they were spied onHere Feinstein makes, ahem, a constitutional argument,
Very ironic?
There’s a lot more to say, but I’ll leave it there for now. rebellion against the herd is spreadingStay tuned,