Flock Safety trims ALPR data retention to seven days and adds mandatory search safeguards

Flock Safety will cut the retention period for its automated license-plate-reader footage from 30 days to seven, while obligating law-enforcement officers to attach a case code to every search. The firm is also making its Audit Assistance system a required feature, automatically detecting and flagging atypical query patterns and potentially suspending user access until an administrator reviews the activity. An emergency override remains for critical incidents such as missing-child cases, but those searches will be marked for later audit.

Agencies may use a new Evidence Mode to preserve data tied to a specific case number beyond the standard week, and can extend retention if state or local law demands it. The overhaul follows mounting pressure from privacy groups, notably the ACLU, which claims ALPR networks enable mass surveillance, and comes as California Senate Bill 1013, proposing statewide ALPR rules, moves toward final approval. Flock’s CEO Garrett Langley defended the measures as the toughest in the nation and urged police departments to adopt the standards.