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Following suit with the City of Sheboygan and other agencies, the cancellation of contracts with Flock Safety is now cascading through multiple jurisdictions in Wisconsin. On Friday, both the Fond du Lac County law enforcement agencies and the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office announced the immediate suspension of all Flock Safety products currently in use. The cameras capture images of license plates and the data is intended solely for the use of the law enforcement agencies per their contract with Flock Safety.
In the case of Fond du Lac County, the decision followed the discovery that search data from their Flock systems, including records tied to active investigations, was disclosed to the public by law enforcement agencies in other states in response to open records requests they received, making it accessible nationwide, in spite of the fact that no authorization was given by Fond du Lac County. Chiefs of the Fond du Lac, Waupun, Ripon and North Fond du Lac Police Departments also signed on to the actions.
The Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office cited similar discovery of unauthorized release of data from their records. That office coordinated with the Neenah, Menasha, Fox Crossing, Winneconne and UW Oshkosh Police Departments in a coordinated move to discontinue the system’s use.
The City of Sheboygan covered its Flock Cameras the week of August 25th and has petitioned the City Council to cancel its contract.
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