Tempe, Arizona will end its contract with Flock Safety to operate AI-based license plate reader cameras. The system has been used for criminal investigations, but the city judged that the risk of privacy violations outweighed public safety benefits after cases of misuse emerged elsewhere.

On Aug. 27, local time, IT outlet Business Insider reported that Tempe has stopped operating Flock's automatic license plate reader (ALPR) network and has begun procedures to terminate the contract. The city operates 33 reader cameras, which police have used to identify and track vehicles during investigations. Tempe also does not plan to replace the equipment with similar technology from another company.

Tempe Mayor Corey Woods (코리 우즈) said he does not deny that the cameras helped police work, but added that the risk of misuse is too great. He said the decision to remove the cameras was made to secure public safety while maintaining the community's trust. Tempe officially announced the shutdown of the system and the plan to remove the equipment the previous day, on Aug. 26.

No actual misuse has been confirmed in Tempe. Tempe police said monthly audits found no cases of improper searches in the city's reader system. The problem occurred elsewhere. In nearby Apache Junction, a police officer was placed on administrative leave over allegations that he used the reader system to track his wife.

The cameras may remain on roads until they are removed, but the collection of license plate information has already stopped. Existing data is typically deleted after 30 days unless needed for ongoing cases or investigations. Tempe police also previously halted data sharing through the system on Aug. 11 for privacy reasons.

Flock's license plate reader cameras are installed on roadside utility poles or signs and photograph passing vehicles. Using machine learning, they can identify not only license plates but also features such as vehicle color and type, dents and bumper stickers. Founded in 2017, Flock operates more than 80,000 enforcement cameras across the United States. Police cite as an advantage the ability to search a nationwide enforcement camera network to track stolen vehicles or vehicles linked to criminal suspects.