Flock Safety, a leader in vehicle monitoring technology, has long maintained that its systems are incapable of recognizing, identifying, or tracking individuals. However, recent developments reveal that the company has created an artificial intelligence tool specifically for law enforcement that can indeed identify drivers and monitor vehicles based solely on their movement patterns, as uncovered by WIRED.
This innovative system utilizes a network of cameras deployed in over 6,000 communities, enabling it to identify potential witnesses based on the frequency with which their vehicles traverse specific neighborhoods. It can also uncover connections by tracking drivers who appear together in various camera feeds. By integrating information from police case files, 911 logs, and commercial identity databases, the system can translate license plate numbers into personal information, including names, addresses, and relationships. Remarkably, it can even conduct searches in designated areas using only a physical description of a person.
Initially called Nightshift and now branded as OS Investigate, this software comes equipped with 69 preset prompts that law enforcement officers can choose from, modify, and submit to the AI. Additionally, officers have the option to create their own custom prompts.
WIRED discovered a repository of over 450 files on Flock’s website, accessible via its login pages. This cache includes descriptions of 45 tools available to the AI, giving it access to a wide range of data, such as license plate scans, camera metadata, arrest records, case documents, dispatch logs, ballistics outcomes, and commercial databases that feature sensitive information like Social Security numbers, birthdates, and contact details.
Flock has indicated that it is currently testing this product with a select group of law enforcement agencies, suggesting that the system is still in development and may not represent the final version that will be marketed. This rollout coincides with increasing bipartisan scrutiny, documented incidents of officers misusing the platform, and a surge of vandalism targeting cameras across various cities.
Experts in privacy and legal matters have raised alarming constitutional issues regarding Flock's tools, which provide law enforcement with extensive, frequently warrantless access to detailed records of individuals' movements. The prompts reviewed by WIRED appear to extend this concern further, allowing the technology to implicate drivers based solely on their driving habits and locations, independent of any criminal activity.
Flock’s business model previously revolved around a straightforward transaction: a camera would capture a vehicle's image, convert the plate to text, and check it against a list of vehicles of interest to the police. In contrast, OS Investigate reverses this paradigm. Officers no longer need specific plates or names to initiate a search; they simply input a location, timeframe, and behavioral pattern, and the system returns relevant individuals who match these criteria.
All of the 69 available prompts serve as a streamlined menu of predefined searches for officers. By selecting a prompt, it is instantly inserted into a chat box, allowing for review and editing before final submission.
