Documented Incident
Audit logs from Plano, Illinois show 1,200+ Flock searches logged under loitering and vagrancy
First reported: September 9, 2026 · 2 sources
Records obtained through public records requests by the watchdog project Have I Been Flocked show that more than 1,200 searches of Flock Safety's license plate reader network were logged under the reason category "Curfew/Loitering/Vagrancy Violations" in Plano, Illinois alone. The logs also indicate out-of-state agencies querying Plano's cameras, including a Georgia department more than 600 miles away. Flock has said it does not use facial recognition and told CNN its system is not designed to track people on foot. Whether any of the searches violated agency policy or state law has not been established.
Search-reason fields are one of the few oversight mechanisms attached to ALPR networks, and what officers enter into them shapes what the public can learn about how nationwide camera access is used. Illinois restricts license plate reader data use for immigration and reproductive health investigations but, as reported, does not address loitering-related queries.
Key facts
- More than 1,200 searches in Plano, Illinois records were categorized as "Curfew/Loitering/Vagrancy Violations," per Have I Been Flocked's FOIA-obtained logs
- Logs reportedly show a Georgia agency searching Plano's cameras from over 600 miles away
- Flock Safety operates roughly 120,000 cameras nationwide; CEO Garrett Langley has stated a mission to "eliminate crime"
- ACLU senior policy analyst Jay Stanley told Patch that technology marketed on dramatic rescue scenarios ends up used for prosaic offenses
- The Supreme Court struck down a Jacksonville vagrancy ordinance in Papachristou v. City of Jacksonville (1972)
Sources
This summary was written from the published reporting below and links to it; BlockFlockNow does not reproduce article text.
- Cops Are Using Flock to Spy on People for the Crime of Loitering (Gadget Review, September 9, 2026)
- Cops Are Using Flock to Spy on People for the Crime of Standing Around (The Intercept, September 9, 2026)
More from Illinois
Everything we have documented in Illinois, or search every Illinois article in the archive.
About this record
BlockFlockNow documents reported incidents involving Flock Safety cameras and automated license plate readers: council votes, contract decisions, misuse by authorized users, lawsuits, audits, and community response. Every record is reviewed by a person before publication. New to the topic? Start with What is Flock?, find meetings near you, or learn how to request your town's camera records.
Updated September 15, 2026. Corrections: blockflock@bytebunny.io. See all documented incidents or search the full article archive.