Garrett Langley, CEO of Flock Safety, discusses the company's license plate reader cameras and drones used by over 6,000 cities to solve crimes and find missing people. He addresses privacy concerns, including accusations of creating a surveillance state, and explains how Flock is evolving to prevent abuse by police. The conversation centers on the trade-off between safety and privacy, with Langley advocating for community control over data retention and use.
Summarized by Podsumo
Flock has solved over 1 million crimes and found 10,000+ missing people last year using license plate readers and drones.
The company now requires an audit assistance tool to detect and fire abusive police officers; it has caught dozens already.
Data retention is controlled by local communities, with a default of 7 days, but cities can choose up to 30 days or more.
Flock does not use facial recognition or capture video, distinguishing it from competitors.
Drones are deployed to 911 calls to de-escalate situations, like identifying a gun as a lighter, preventing potential violence.
"“If you don't trust the police, you're right to be concerned. We're building tools to find the bad cops and get rid of them.” — Garrett Langley"
"“We want to live in a safer neighborhood, but we also want to keep our privacy. That balance is hard.” — Garrett Langley"
"“The 10% of crimes that take longer to solve—like homicides or sexual assaults—those are the ones that matter most. We need to keep that data longer.” — Garrett Langley"