The city of Los Angeles allowed a three-year contract with Flock Security expire -- at least for now -- amid concerns about privacy, data storage and the effectiveness of Flock's license plate reader technology, as well as moves by other cities to distance themselves from the Atlanta-based surveillance company.

Over the weekend, the Los Angeles Police Department announced it would no longer use the 138 mounted surveillance cameras in the city operated by Flock, which were being used to track vehicles by automatically reading their license plates. But a few days later, at a Police Commission meeting, the law enforcement agency said it is negotiating with Flock for a new contract that would provide more control for the LAPD to manage data generated from surveillance equipment and would give 24-hour notice of any data breach.

A few months ago, the Los Angeles Times reported on discontent in LA over Flock potentially sharing information with the US government, including the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, although at the time the LAPD praised Flock's cameras as "tremendous investigative tools."

In May, a city council member moved to suspend new contracts or agreements with Flock.

The LA City Council did not respond immediately to a request for comment. 

The LAPD told news outlets when the contract expired that a sticking point on moving forward with the company was uncertainty about the data that Flock collects from its cameras, including who owns it and how it can be used once it's collected.   

In an email to CNET, a spokesperson for Flock said, "We are confident that through ongoing discussions with LAPD, we can clear up the current misconceptions that led to Friday's disappointing pause. We hope to resume our successful partnership with the department soon." 

Cities dropping, pausing or reevaluating Flock

A number of US cities have decided to part ways with Flock Safety this year, but even after contracts ended, some continued to have issues with the company.

Dayton, Ohio, and Evanston, Illinois, both used trash bags to cover Flock cameras to prevent the company from continuing to operate them. 

Dayton, which has paused its Flock service, alleged the company had made data-sharing violations, including searches related to immigration enforcement. Evanston issued a cease-and-desist order after discovering that Flock had reinstalled cameras the city had ordered removed. 

Other cities that have canceled contracts with Flock include Mountain View and Oakland, California; Knoxville, Tennessee; Flagstaff, Arizona; Cambridge, Massachusetts; San Marcos, Texas; and Redmond, Washington. 

Flock said it's aware of concerns across multiple cities. "We are working closely with those cities to better understand and address their concerns," a spokesperson told CNET. "So far in 2026, new city partnerships have outpaced non-renewals by roughly 7 to 1. For every city that has chosen not to continue its contract, about seven new cities have joined Flock."

The spokesperson added that the public "deserves thoughtful discussion and community engagement" on privacy concerns that have been raised across the country. "Our goal is to remain a constructive partner to cities as they evaluate how these tools can best support their public safety priorities," the Flock spokesperson said.

The website DeFlock is maintaining a running list of city councils that have canceled contracts or rejected bids from Flock.   

As DeFlock points out, Flock isn't the only vendor of software and hardware that performs automatic license plate reading. Others include Axon, Genetec and Motorola Solutions.