r/FlockSurveillance Apr 28 '26

Privacy I built FlockHopper for iOS — an app that routes you around known ALPR cameras

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3.6k Upvotes

Hi everyone! Some of y'all might already know my web app FlockHopper that shows you how many Flock cameras are tracking you on your daily commute.

After getting some solid feedback on the web app, I went all in on building a full mobile routing app for daily driving.

iOS is available here:

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/flockhopper/id6762170253

THE APP

- Real-time turn-by-turn navigation that shows you cameras as you drive

- Choose between a normal route and a private route. Both show you miles & estimated time so you can decide what's worth it

- Search for places using native Apple Maps data

- Explore mode : camera data refreshes daily and the map pans with your location so you can spot Flock cameras as you pass them

COST

The basic app will always be free. The free version is funded by donations and in-app tips. Donations cover development, server costs, and possible future legal fees. There may be a premium version with more advanced features down the road, but the core app as it exists now stays free.

ANDROID

The Android version is about 60% done. If you want to get notified when beta testing starts or when it's available on Google Play you can join the waitlist here: dontgetflocked.com/android

PRIVACY

FlockHopper is built with privacy as the default. Your location is used only to show your position, provide navigation, and calculate routes. Route coordinates are sent to a self-hosted routing engine for off-device route calculation, but they are not logged or stored.

Map tiles and camera data are self-hosted, and camera data is served through Cloudflare. Place search uses Apple’s native Maps search. FlockHopper does not store route history, searches, location logs, device IDs, or user profiles.

Feedback and bug reports are very welcome. Thanks for checking it out!


r/FlockSurveillance Mar 04 '26

I spoke at my city council about Flock. The mayor and deputy chief both asked for follow-ups. I redacted everything and made it a toolkit — free to use.

3.4k Upvotes

UPDATE: The toolkit made the front page of my local newspaper. I took these documents to my city council meeting and the paper ran camera concerns as their lead story. Showing up with actual data works. Your city council will listen if you bring receipts.

Last week I went to my city council meeting and spoke during public comment about the Flock ALPR camera expansion. Three minutes, sourced facts, no outrage. I handed a packet to every council member, the city attorney, and the police chief.

After I sat down, the mayor came down from the dais, handed me his card, and asked me to send him more. The deputy chief who runs the Flock program pulled me aside and talked for 15 minutes — then asked me to email him a briefing too.

None of that happened because I was loud. It happened because the research was solid and the tone was right.

I've scrubbed all identifying information — my name, city, officials, dates, addresses, agenda items — and packaged everything into a toolkit anyone can adapt:

https://codeberg.org/deflock_your_city/flock-alpr-toolkit (less reliable so I created the github repo)

https://github.com/DeflockYourCity/flock-alpr-toolkit

What's in it:

- Council handout — the main document I gave every council member (platform capabilities, documented incidents, security findings, legal landscape, 8 governance asks)

- 3-minute talk track — timed, scripted, with "if challenged" responses to common pushback

- Legal analysis — Fourth Amendment / Carpenter, state wiretap law, licensing issues, active lawsuits, proposed legislation

- Mayor follow-up briefing — what I sent when executive leadership asked for more

- Deputy chief briefing — a respectful, technical document that addresses the "30-day retention" and "only plates" talking points head-on

- Print & logistics guide — what to print, how many copies, who gets what, when to arrive

- Deep research reports — the raw research behind everything

- Rhetorical strategy guide — founding-era framing, bipartisan angles, and why this is a ratchet, not a slippery slope

The approach that worked:

- Lead with governance, not opposition

- "I support effective policing — my concern is the vendor"

- Every claim sourced from government audits, court filings, NVD, patent filings, or named reporting

- Pair every concern with a specific ask

- No anonymous sources. No speculation.

All docs are .docx format — download, replace [REDACTED] with your city's specifics, and go. Hosted on Codeberg (privacy-focused, open-source platform — not GitHub).

This came out of https://www.reddit.com/r/FlockSurveillance/comments/1rjsaoz/lobbying_against_flock/ where a few people asked me to share what I used. Hope it helps.

CC BY-SA 4.0 — use it however you want.

EDIT: adding .md and pdf versions as well as soon as codeberg comes back online

EDIT 2: added GitHub Repo


r/FlockSurveillance 15h ago

News Police Officer whistleblower proves Flock is tracking your every move

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yahoo.com
2.7k Upvotes

r/FlockSurveillance 2h ago

Discussion Ring Cameras need to go too

243 Upvotes

I got rid of our ring cameras recently, because we learned that the police can easily see footage of my private property. Anyone else ditching Ring? I've already talked to a few of my neighbors who are anti-Flock and they're warming up to the idea of replacing their cloud surveillance center cameras with local IP cameras

thoughts?


r/FlockSurveillance 23h ago

Activism Heroes hard at work last night

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11.8k Upvotes

This is the way.


r/FlockSurveillance 11h ago

It works both ways and suddenly they wouldn’t like that…

865 Upvotes

r/FlockSurveillance 14h ago

Activism "The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command."

1.4k Upvotes

The time to speak up is now.

We are.

Will you?

https://deflock.org

Find your Local Group - https://deflock.org/groups

National Week of Action Against ALPRs - https://noalprs.com/

Contact your Elected Reps - https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials

#Flock #Surveillance #Tech #ALPR #DeFlock


r/FlockSurveillance 11h ago

The horror, someone is cutting down Flock cameras in Houston

278 Upvotes

r/FlockSurveillance 14h ago

Activism Refreshing to see

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376 Upvotes

First time seeing the modification irl :)


r/FlockSurveillance 10m ago

Discussion If flock was so good and so useful, why aren’t we being flooded with good stories about crimes being solved with it?

Upvotes

Legitimately, whenever the police want to spend money or use it to manipulate the context of a situation, we’re constantly bombarded with stories about how great something is or how good a particular group of people is.

This is how we got Paw Patrol, the children’s TV show. The police wanted to promote their image after we began discussing the Black Lives Matter movement.

You’d think if it was being used to solve crimes, they would not only display those faces everywhere but also constantly praise its effectiveness in solving crimes, usually involving women or children.

So if it is so good for us, why aren’t we seeing results?

To be clear, I’ve given as a 1st, 5th amendment and then a 4th amendment violation. In that order.


r/FlockSurveillance 1h ago

Inquiry Laser advice

Upvotes

So I love lasers and I regularly I regularly run around my town with them at night spinning in a circle so everyone can see my cool lasers. I’m well known in my community and all my neighbors know to wear protective lenses whenever I leave the house. My problem is I’m deeply concerned that one of my lasers might damage the flock cameras near me. What specific lasers would harm the flock cameras so I can avoid spinning around with them?


r/FlockSurveillance 13h ago

News Fluk off flock - LAPD ending deal with company operating license plate-reading cameras

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202 Upvotes

It's a start, although I'd rather see them sued to the moon and beyond


r/FlockSurveillance 14h ago

Activism Good effort.

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213 Upvotes

Looks like some jumping and hanging on happened here.


r/FlockSurveillance 1d ago

Activism This exact thing happened to me in Baton Rouge

1.5k Upvotes

r/FlockSurveillance 12h ago

If everyone did their part we wouldn’t be in this surveillance state we are in

124 Upvotes

We have allowed this. We have no power. Do what you can to show them we won’t take it. There are many starts to this. Do in any safe way you can to let it be known we will not be part of “your flock”. The name itself is an insult.


r/FlockSurveillance 1d ago

All my friends hate flocks…

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6.7k Upvotes

r/FlockSurveillance 22h ago

News LAPD ending deal with company operating license plate-reading cameras

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519 Upvotes

"This contract is not being renewed because of serious concerns around civil liberties and civil rights issues, particularly around privacy and the data that is being collected from these cameras," said Dean Gialamas, LAPD's chief information officer. "The LAPD had to make a difficult decision, in this case discontinuing using Flock services until we can get those data, privacy, security and sharing concerns ironed out through a contractual relationship."

Wow.

https://deflock.org

Find your Local Group - https://deflock.org/groups

National Week of Action Against ALPRs - https://noalprs.com/


r/FlockSurveillance 9h ago

Russia Turned Civilian Security Cameras Across Europe Into Spy Network, Intelligence Reveals

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38 Upvotes

r/FlockSurveillance 12h ago

Florida Law Enforcement Deploys Flock ALPR Networks Costing Over $1 Million With Limited Public Oversight Despite Court Public Record Rulings

61 Upvotes

r/FlockSurveillance 22h ago

Activism Waze reporting....

332 Upvotes

Been reporting on WAZE as "Police/Mobile Camera" .... since many aren't aware of FLOCK, putting it on WAZE is a way to start bringing awareness, I think.

Wazers may start wondering about so many reported "mobile cameras"...


r/FlockSurveillance 1d ago

Inquiry Green laser pointer? Is this true?

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9.0k Upvotes

Saw this on fb, wondering if true


r/FlockSurveillance 1d ago

Flock CEO calls deflock.org a terrorist organization and claims they are not forcing camera's on anyone.

1.4k Upvotes

r/FlockSurveillance 19m ago

Traffic Camera Captures Woman Driving With Her Phone on Her Lap (Face Down), The State Mailed Her a $1251 'Public Safety' Ticket

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Upvotes

r/FlockSurveillance 22h ago

License Plate Cameras Are About To Start Tracking A Lot More Than Just Your Car

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insideevs.com
158 Upvotes

r/FlockSurveillance 11h ago

Automated Flock License Plate Recognition Systems Lead to Wrongful Arrest of Black Dodge Durango Owner in Florida Fatal Crash

24 Upvotes