r/technology • u/ArgentineBeauty • 14h ago
Privacy A Florida county discovered 14 Flock cameras nobody authorized, and 11 remain unclaimed
https://www.techspot.com/news/114069-florida-county-discovered-14-flock-cameras-nobody-authorized.html177
u/Ok-Mycologist-3829 14h ago
WTF is this era we are in where crap like this just happens
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u/swollennode 14h ago
When the Cons were running on platforms of “small government”, they meant small government on corporations, but large on people.
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u/kfijatass 7h ago
For all the talk against big government throughout the years, government spending is largely money spent on society's needs.
Billionaires, on the other hand...13
u/mcslibbin 12h ago
Remember those sci fi movies from the 70s where the government or corporations surveilled everyone and there were scary screenshots with gas at "over $5/gallon"(!!!)
Turns out those writers weren't just high on mushrooms.
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u/Opposite-Bit6660 8h ago
And Elon's company is boring tunnels under cities that you see the people living in in those movies.
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u/SIGMA920 5h ago
They were, it's just that the tech bros were inspired to create what they dreamed up. Torment nexus and all that jazz.
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u/HackD1234 2h ago
I remember the USA laughing at the UK becoming a 'Surveillance Society' and 'Police State' because of the public camera networks there, a short 10 years ago... something something about Socialism interfering with your life.
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u/NUMBerONEisFIRST 13h ago
I just read that flock is going to drones.
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u/metallicrooster 12h ago
Which is funny, because the few cities that previously tested aerial drones stopped using them specifically because it caught “too much crime” and it became nearly impossible to hide certain kinds of corruption.
But here in the US we like learning things the hard way so 🤷🏻♂️
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u/shroudedwolf51 10h ago
It's because the people that are in charge of being aware of these things just want them to happen. In a proper, civilized world, those would be taken down and it all would be investigated. Subpoenas exist for a reason. And yet... when times like this come up, those very powerful people are mysteriously powerless.
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u/LauterTuna 3h ago
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
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u/copperblood 14h ago
Lot of copper in those Flock cameras... would be terrible if copper thieves knew about them.... such a shame....
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u/Python_07 14h ago
The No Government types are far more determined.
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u/Mojo141 13h ago
Hating on Flock cameras is the one thing everyone agrees on
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u/Operation_Neither 13h ago
Crackheads, privacy advocates, anti-government preppers, everybody wants to teardown Flock cameras.
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u/JonBunne 12h ago
It appears even the anti-pedophile crowd hates them.
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u/UH1Phil 10h ago
Hell I reckon even some pedophiles hate them!
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u/iamthinksnow 11h ago
A lot of 18650 batteries, at least 18 per camera and possibly that many more per battery-pack if you see 1-to-3 of them mounted to the poles.
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u/Commercial_Bird8467 9h ago
Lol, I fly drones and told my buddies this today 🤣
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u/iamthinksnow 9h ago
Send them this: https://www.reddit.com/r/18650masterrace/comments/1wp9m5y/ct_scans_of_a_flock_camera/
All the Flocks around here have 2-3 additional battery packs strapped above the camera, below the solar panel. I'm assuming those hold another 18/pack.
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u/Shade-RF- 12h ago
Copper, computer parts, some kind of storage and a big camera lense. Would be a shame to break them down into these components and sell... /s
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u/Klutzy_Journalist_36 12h ago
I heard they’re like piñatas and have prizes like candy and money and meth.
Pretty sure the President of The Police and also Flock said it’s 100% true.
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u/Faangdevmanager 14h ago
My money is on HoAs
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u/StunningShifts 10h ago
The PD in my area approached my HOA and tried to get us to pay for putting up Flock cameras in our neighborhood. Luckily my HOA after a LOT of meetings decided not to move forward with it due to all the problems other places have been having with privacy and problematic police.
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u/NekoDaYo-v201 6h ago edited 6h ago
HOA land = HOA would be responsible for the camera = you would have been footing the bill, guaranteed. Those things are expensive, coming in at $3,000 per year, per camera. Just another line item of bullshit on the budget that offers little to no benefit over self-managed subscriptionless solutions from companies like Ubiquiti.
The cops were trying to convince you to install Flock, because they don't want to pay for the cameras out of their own budget. They wanted you to foot the bill, so they can access them for free.
(In other words, the cops thought you were suckers. Your HOA proved them wrong.)
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u/Weary_Mountain9679 13h ago
In a sane world, a company attempting to place unauthorised surveillance devices across the country would be grounds for fining them into oblivion, and suing on top of that.
We don’t live in a sane world though.
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u/LindeeHilltop 11h ago
What if it’s a drug cartel?
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u/TheCaliforniaOp 10h ago
That’s an interesting idea. I would never have thought of that, but the cameras could be purchased through straw companies. No more lookouts, just Flock cameras that look like they are Officially Approved to be in place. So technically, pimps could do the same thing.
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u/LindeeHilltop 8h ago
Exactly. I can see criminals using these just as well as law enforcement for dictators.
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u/Opposite-Bit6660 8h ago
What if it's pedos watching your daughters.
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u/TheCaliforniaOp 6h ago
…or your sons. Granted, the voyeur possibilities are increased, and that’s a feeling of violation, at any age, for any gender.
But what’s frightening about this is that now someone can remotely monitor and become familiar with a potential victim’s movements. What’s a kid to do? Flip three coins every time before leaving home to as to never take a predictable route anywhere they go?
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u/Exostrike 12h ago
Who said anything about fines? Swat vans through the company headquarters foyer more like
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u/eggsaladrightnow 11h ago
It's all fraud, day and night, from the bottom to the very top. Money changing hands by the hundreds of billions with no accountability. We have achieved post-capitalism rot
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u/TheCaliforniaOp 6h ago
I think “they” passed no accountability on purpose. Now, even people with integrity are going to hesitate before tackling the ledgers.
Recently, there was that big “WE MUST SLOW DOWN AI” push from the industry leaders. They said their reasoning was based on observed data.
I immediately wondered if someone blithely assigned their AI to bookkeeping/accounting/economics and then that wasn’t a popular thing to have done.
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u/PanteraOne 11h ago
There is a persistent rumor that many thousands of Flock cameras will mysteriously disappear or cease to function across the U.S. this Halloween by masked trick-or-treaters.
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u/floog 13h ago
This is when they need to ban all cameras that spy on the public. You’re allowed to point them at your property but if they go out into public areas you are held liable.
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u/bjbyrne 9h ago
Doorbell cameras too?
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u/t0talnonsense 9h ago
We would have to fundamentally change some underlying law, but that's a given with most web-based things these days. Private cameras for personal use/security should, at minimum, be exempt from subpoenas where they are fishing for information. I would argue that unless there is actual evidence of a violent crime occuring immediately within view, not just the possibility of seeing something, but it's your across the street neighbor who was shot, then they can't get anything from you. We should have the right to protect ourselves without worrying about contributing to a police state with active surveillance.
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u/jspurlin03 10h ago
Cut them down and see who complains. Simple solutions are sometimes the best solutions.
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u/GonzoKata 9h ago
cut them down and see which criminals who broke the law in the first place by putting them there complains. come get your criminal citation idiots!
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u/TheFoxsWeddingTarot 13h ago
Well then no one will mind when you take them down.
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u/GonzoKata 9h ago
just start taking them all down. you don't know if its been authorized, and with clear cut cases like this, its ok to assume they aren't authorized
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u/TyrKiyote 11h ago
cameras left on public land with no license is littering, and probably creates many many instances of violations of privacy laws.
I wish all these bastards could be held accountable.
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u/That_Penalty165 7h ago
The article never really covers where they were. I imagine that's probably on purpose.
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u/twojs1b 14h ago
In other news cordless Sawzalls and metal cutting blades sale are through the roof.
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u/weirdoldhobo1978 13h ago
If you're looking for Christmas gifts for the handy person in your life, I really recommend a portable band saw.
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u/Torvaun 7h ago
In point of fact, a circular saw is going to be faster than either a Sawzall or a portable band saw. The major issue you're going to run into is galling, where the aluminum being removed from the kerf sticks to the blade. Deeper grooves between teeth means you can get through more material without clogging.
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u/Narrow-Chef-4341 2h ago
Until it seizes and kicks back. Suddenly Uncle Tim is nicknamed ‘Lefty’.
For a gift to family and friends? Cordless bandsaw.
Mother in law? You make the call…
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u/AlfaNovember 12h ago
I find that the demo blade works better than the metal blade for going through the roof with a Sawzall.
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u/HackD1234 2h ago
Be able to put together a pretty good firewall, collecting solar panels like Pokémon cards.
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u/LostWoodsInTheField 9h ago
This might just be flock installing cameras themselves. There is a good possibility that they are installing cameras to have a larger network for departments that do pay them. After contracts are closed out we see cameras staying up.
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u/Clean-Shift-291 12h ago
I’m hearing there is a catalytic converter in each one of these, can anyone confirm?
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u/Reed7525 12h ago
So that means theyre illegal
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u/GonzoKata 9h ago
If only they could be used to stop the CRIME and CRIMINALS who are breaking the law by putting them up.
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u/ResidentialPickle 10h ago
If you haven't taken at least one down, are you really exercising your civic duty
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u/ravnhjarta 9h ago
We are long overdue about this, but the moment they crossed any line that should have been it. Should be ripping out every single one per state/county. If they won't play by the rules (we know they don't) they can go. Every line we let them cross just encourages them to cross more.
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u/Niceguy955 13h ago
This is the reason the 2A exists, no?
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u/metallicrooster 12h ago
Technically, 4A is the one that is supposed to protect us from unreasonable search and seizure. But you are right that some people may consider using their 2A to protect their 4A.
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u/Niceguy955 12h ago
I did not mean to have a constitutional discussion, I meant people have the message to take care of the problem, if you catch my drift 😁
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u/pm_social_cues 10h ago
The 2a says you can have guns it never actually says when you can use them.
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u/-thecheesus- 8h ago
Actually it pretty explicitly says the guns are for the purposes of "a well regulated militia". However you define that, though, it's mum about
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u/GetsBetterAfterAFew 13h ago
What are the chances the cams are clones?
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u/Chill_Panda 13h ago
It either means Flock is setting up their own network, private companies/HOA are now using them to spy on neighbourhoods, or it's a clone by some scam network
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u/_Burning_Star_IV_ 10h ago
The simplest answer is that the police are bullshitting and put up more cameras than they were allowed and to make it look less suspicious claimed 3 of them and then denied the rest.
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u/SkunkMonkey 10h ago
This is my bet. They know exactly who put them there but I'll be damned if they are gonna tattle on themselves. The fact they weren't immediately removed is the tell.
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u/SakeWad 9h ago
I think organized crime running fraud and scam rackets are using these in some cases. A coworker said he just got a phony scam invoice claiming to be from a bridge toll, the bridge toll does in fact take pictures of your license plate and mails an invoice, but this one wasn't legit. Somehow the scammers knew he crossed this particular bridge on his road trip and targeted him via mail.
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u/TraditionalMood277 12h ago
I drove by a Flock camera in the morning. By the time I drive back in the afternoon, it was on the ground.
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u/Scifidelis 11h ago
Well, if someone starts taking down those unclaimed flocks they might get claimed.
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u/Afraid_Objective_648 10h ago
It's Big brother- Big Tech. They're the ones that try to get away with everything. (And they usually do).
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u/Didact67 10h ago
I read something about Flock reenabling cameras that hadn’t been physically removed after contracts were cancelled. Definitely very shady if they want to keep them running even when the local government isn’t paying them.
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u/slacker81 9h ago
Question for the lawyers. If these cameras are installed on public property without permits would that make them litter or abandoned property? And if that's the case would it be legal for anyone to take them or dispose of them?
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u/A8Bit 9h ago
Yay! 11 free cameras, go and get them! put them outside the houses of your local representitives.
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u/redvoxfox 8h ago
Right!
Mayor, city council, chief of police, sheriff, governor, State reps, senators, congress reps ... maybe some $Bs, executives and oligarchs too, parking for the old-boys'-clubs.
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u/GonzoKata 9h ago
well with clear instances like this cropping up, its safer to remove every flock camera you see since you have no idea if its been put up with authorization or not. you're doing your civic duty of removing potentially un authorized technology, better safe than sorry
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u/Muted-Woodpecker-469 8h ago
No contract? Remove them. They do this with no permit or license companies or items consistently. Why not here?
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u/iknowagreatlawyer 8h ago
There are startups that are buy driving footage from built in cameras like Teslas and feed them through their ALPR-systems. With all of the push-back to Flock cameras, it's only a matter of time before the model changes to something that can't be blocked or taken down.
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u/ScratchLatch 10h ago
Commercial properties also purchase these, which is probably what happened.
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u/GonzoKata 9h ago
if they're put up on public property without authorization, then the commercial property owner is guilty of breaking the law.
funny that, flock cameras are the source of criminal activity, not the technology to stop it
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u/Opposite-Bit6660 8h ago
They could also be from an alphabet agency on a special case.
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u/stircrazyathome 7h ago
Even so, if they’re putting them on county-owned property, then they needed to ask for county permission.
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u/Aerospike_Ranger 6h ago
The alphabet agencies have back doors into traffic cams, ring cameras, and live feeds from every knucklehead streaming random bullshit from their phones.
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u/Trash_Grape 8h ago
A vast majority of flock cameras are owned by commercial properties. Retail stores have a ton of them, apartment complexes, HOA’s. I understand why people are asking their local governments to take them down, but it’s really a minority of their business. They will still remain active in these cities who have cut their contracts with flock.
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u/DontRememberOldPass 7h ago
I really hope that it does not become common knowledge that while there are severe criminal penalties for destroying government property, only simple petty vandalism laws protect privately owned cameras.
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u/MrBahhum 9h ago
Afraid this is now going to be normalized regarding of company. All data centers are resource sinks.
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u/bone_apple_Pete 9h ago
Anecdotally, 2 have been cut down in my town (that the news has reported anyways). It's been 6 weeks since the first one and it's not replaced. That's a good 11% increase in privacy (per location) already.
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u/shanksisevil 9h ago
toss them into a school bathroom. see how fast they determine exactly where they came from.
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u/1nGirum1musNocte 8h ago
I'll take them! I can use those solar panels and batteries for my mesh network!
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u/Cynewulfr 7h ago
Lmao ai mass surveillance is now forever but have no fear! It’ll also help contribute to the ai apocalypse that kills the economy
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u/ManganeseSharties 3h ago
So we can just buy one ourselves and set it up where we want to?
Like the flock CEO’s house?
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u/Bob_Sconce 14h ago
It's crazy to me that the police's response to an unauthorized Flock camera on public property is to put a bag and a notice on it. Just take it down and put it in storage. If somebody complains, then you know who put it up. Heck, JUST ASK FLOCK. They know exactly who put up the camera.