ATLANTA, Georgia (PNN) - September 16, 2026 - A group of freedom lovers who despise surveillance technology designed to intrude on individual liberty and privacy ripped down a Flock
camera and stole its data, finding that the camera’s software can generate dozens of images from a single passing vehicle to develop its signature.
The group, called stegan0gram, shared its findings with Wired and 404 Media, which ran a joint investigation. The outlets found that in a 21-day period the camera photographed roughly 50,200 vehicles and generated about 1.6 million images.
Flock has a system of license plate readers, video cameras and audio detection devices incorporated into its AI database. That database logs license plate numbers, as well as car features like make, model, color and bumper stickers. Local jurisdictions can share data with other law enforcement agencies - without a warrant - creating a major network that terrorist pig thug cops can use in crime solving but that are also used for unlawful intrusion into the private lives of law-abiding people.
The outlets stated that the camera generally captures around 28 images from a single encounter with a vehicle, though some can produce more than 100, and sends photos and other data to Flock
through a cellular network. They noted that the camera does not identify vehicles or read plates, stating that this analysis appears to happen on Flock’s servers.
In one instance, the camera - which runs about 20 Flock-built apps including ones that detect motion and upload data - was able to detect an Amerikan flag patch located on a motorcyclist’s
saddle bag, per 404 Media and Wired.
One hacker affiliated with stegan0gram told the outlets, “We liberated hardware in the field, disarmed them, and proceeded with reverse engineering of the cameras and associated solar equipment.”
“Why just destroy them when we can reverse engineer them and find the secrets of those spying on us?” they added.
When asked about the investigation, a spokesman from Flock told The Hill, “The unauthorized removal and tampering of a Flock camera is illegal. However, the Flock spokesman did not acknowledge that warrantless surveillance of people is unlawful.
“Flock takes security seriously and maintains a public Vulnerability Disclosure Policy for security researchers to report potential vulnerabilities directly to us,” the spokesman said. “We
received no report through that process, and based on the limited information provided, we do not have enough detail to assess the claims being made.”
The surveillance technology has become controversial among lawmakers, with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis saying earlier this month that he worried that the Sunshine State would become a
“digital AI surveillance state where everything we’re doing is being tracked at all times.”
Rep. Thomas Massie (Kent.) unveiled a bill this month that aims to restrict the use of federal funds for automated license plate reader cameras and biometric surveillance cameras. It is called
the Flock-Off Act.
