Federal judge calls Flock ‘indiscriminate mass surveillance’

A federal judge ruled that a Tulsa, Oklahoma deputy broke a woman's rights. The deputy searched a Flock Safety database for her licence plate without a warrant. Judge Sara Hill said the search was not allowed. The deputy had no clear reason to look, other than that her car had a California plate. The search led deputies to her travel history and then to 91 pounds of meth in her car. Judge Hill said that evidence must be thrown out.

Flock Safety runs a network of cameras that read licence plates. Police use it to track cars. The judge called warrantless use 'indiscriminate mass surveillance.' She compared it to a Supreme Court case about phone location data. The ruling does not set a national rule, but it is one of the first times a federal judge has called a Flock search unconstitutional. It could guide other courts and police.

Cameras can log where ordinary people drive every day. This case asks how much police can watch us without a judge's approval.