Flock License Plate Readers Turn Chicago Suburbs Into Ground Zero for a Surveillance Fight

William Copp was given broad access to Flock Safety's license plate reader system as a part-time police officer in Prairie Grove, a village about an hour northwest of Chicago. Flock's cameras track every driver that passes them, logging billions of plate scans in databases that can be searched by any law enforcement agency paying for access — data that has been reached by federal immigration authorities. Prosecutors in McHenry County are now pursuing the matter.