Several towns in Connecticut have decided to remove Flock Safety license plate reader cameras from their communities, citing privacy concerns and uncertainty about who accesses stored data.

Windsor and Killingworth are among the towns that have taken this step.

“Flock Safety could not guarantee that it’s not sharing information with federal agencies,” a local reporter stated.

Killingworth installed four Flock cameras along Route 81 last fall. The town has no police department and relies on one resident state trooper. Officials said the cameras were intended to help address speeding on the road, where the speed limit fluctuates depending on whether school is in session.

Resident Scott Prisley acknowledged the need for the cameras, noting, “Yeah, I would say there’s quite a bit of speeding.” However, Prisley expressed reservations about the technology. A protest sign beneath one camera read: “MASS SURVEILLANCE CAMERA. YOUR LOCATION IS BEING TRACKED.”

The cameras photograph license plates and send that data to a database. Town officials have indicated it has not always been clear who accesses that information.

Windsor Mayor Nuchette Black-Burke and the Windsor Town Council voted on July 6 to permanently turn off the Flock Safety license plate reader cameras, following a 5-4 divided vote against reinstating them. The decision comes after months of debate. On February 18, the Windsor Town Council initially voted to turn off the cameras while town leaders sought clarity from the company about who accesses the data.

Black-Burke stated that Flock Safety could not guarantee federal law enforcement was not accessing the system to track citizens. “Privacy, where is the data going, who has access to that information — is it being shared with third parties?” she asked. Mayor Black-Burke confirmed the town did not receive a clear answer from the company about who accesses their cameras. With United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) protests occurring in Connecticut, several residents raised concerns about federal agencies having access to these cameras.

Flock Safety cameras have sparked controversy nationwide, with reports of police misuse and incidents such as a U.S. Air Force engineer in Virginia facing felony charges for damaging 13 cameras in the Suffolk area. A GoFundMe page for 41-year-old Jeffrey Sovern stated: “I appreciate everyone’s right to privacy, enshrined in the fourth amendment. With local news outlets finding my legal issues and creating a story that is starting to grow, there has been community support for me that I humbly welcome.”

The cameras have proven effective at solving crime, including detecting stolen vehicles and issuing amber alerts, but Black-Burke emphasized the privacy risks.