Discussion · House of Representatives
Suhas Subramanyam Democrat
“Flock cameras track everyday people without a warrant, and companies sell that travel data. Police officers have already misused this system. Congress must pass rules right now to protect our privacy.”
“Mr. Speaker, imagine if someone followed you around everywhere you went with a notepad logging every single one of your moves, everywhere you went, and everything you did, and then reported that to a private company that sells that data to law enforcement or to the highest bidder. That is basically what Flock cameras are. They aren’t traffic cameras. They use AI to log everywhere you go, everything you do, and everywhere you visit; and they build a pattern of life on everyday, law-abiding citizens, without a warrant and without consent. They are getting installed all over Virginia and all over the country. Even my neighborhood, Brambleton, is looking into installing them. That means hundreds of thousands of warrantless searches across our region without any guardrails. It is no surprise that they can and have been abused. More than 50 law enforcement officers have been accused or charged with misusing this technology, and we cannot continue to let this stand. We must put safeguards in place now, and we must protect the privacy and civil liberties of every single American and prevent unauthorized surveillance. We need action now.”
Mr. Speaker, imagine if someone followed you around everywhere you went with a notepad logging every single one of your moves, everywhere you went, and everything you did, and then reported that to a private company that sells that data to law enforcement or to the highest bidder. That is basically what Flock cameras are. They aren’t traffic cameras. They use AI to log everywhere you go, everything you do, and everywhere you visit; and they build a pattern of life on everyday, law-abiding citizens, without a warrant and without consent. They are getting installed all over Virginia and all over the country. Even my neighborhood, Brambleton, is looking into installing them. That means hundreds of thousands of warrantless searches across our region without any guardrails. It is no surprise that they can and have been abused. More than 50 law enforcement officers have been accused or charged with misusing this technology, and we cannot continue to let this stand. We must put safeguards in place now, and we must protect the privacy and civil liberties of every single American and prevent unauthorized surveillance. We need action now.