San Jose Police Officer Fired for Misusing License-Plate Tracking System in Domestic Violence Case A San Jose police officer was terminated in April 2025 after a yearlong investigation revealed he improperly accessed the department’s automated license-plate reader (ALPR) system to track a woman who had accused his cousin of domestic violence. The incident, disclosed by Police Chief Paul Joseph on Friday, highlights growing concerns over the misuse of surveillance technology by law enforcement. The officer, who had served for two years, used his personal phone to retrieve the woman’s vehicle location data and shared it with his cousin, enabling the accused abuser to monitor her movements. While the cousin faced no criminal charges in the domestic violence case, the officer’s actions were uncovered in February 2025 when the woman reported the harassment to police. An audit of the Flock Systems ALPR database confirmed the unauthorized access. Chief Joseph condemned the breach as a "betrayal of public trust," emphasizing that such violations would result in severe consequences, including termination. Though the officer was not criminally charged due to gaps in California law that currently exempt ALPR data from penalties for unauthorized access Joseph has referred the case to the state’s police licensing commission for potential decertification, which could bar the officer from future law enforcement roles. The incident has intensified scrutiny of ALPR technology, which has proliferated across the Bay Area, with nearly 500 cameras installed in San Jose alone. Civil liberties groups, including the ACLU and Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), argue that warrantless access to ALPR data enables abuse, citing cases where officers have used the system to stalk ex-partners or track individuals seeking reproductive healthcare. The EFF, which is suing San Jose over its ALPR program, called the officer’s actions a prime example of why judicial oversight is necessary. San Jose is also facing a federal lawsuit from the Institute for Justice, representing residents who oppose the city’s warrantless surveillance. The case mirrors broader national concerns, including wrongful detentions due to incorrect plate reads and unauthorized cooperation with immigration authorities. While Chief Joseph defended ALPR technology as a critical crime-fighting tool crediting it with aiding homicide investigations and other arrests he acknowledged the need for stricter legal safeguards. He has endorsed state legislation to criminalize unauthorized ALPR access and issued a department-wide ban on accessing law enforcement databases from personal devices. The city has taken steps to limit data retention, reducing the storage period for plate data from one year to 30 days and restricting surveillance near houses of worship, reproductive health clinics, and consulates. However, privacy advocates argue these measures are insufficient without enforceable legal constraints, pointing to past instances where police agencies bypassed vendor-imposed restrictions. The controversy underscores the ongoing tension between law enforcement’s reliance on surveillance tools and civil liberties concerns, with critics warning that unchecked access to ALPR data risks further misuse.

Cybersecurity Roundup: World Cup Scams, VPN Crackdowns, and Surveillance Abuses The 2024 World Cup has brought excitement for fans but also a surge in cyber threats. Scammers are exploiting the event with fake streaming sites, counterfeit ticket schemes, fraudulent betting apps, and dubious crypto offers, targeting unsuspecting supporters. Meanwhile, VPN usage is rising globally, driven by age-verification laws and location-based censorship. In India, users are bypassing a national Telegram ban imposed to curb exam cheating. While VPNs enhance privacy by shielding data from ISPs, governments, and hackers, their legality varies by country. Some nations, including unexpected ones, impose restrictions or outright bans. However, VPNs aren’t a security cure-all tests show they don’t reliably secure cheaper airfare, and using one for online banking can create more risks than it solves. In law enforcement, concerns are growing over misuse of surveillance tools. Flock Safety, a network of license plate-reading cameras, has been exploited by police officers for personal stalking. A recent report revealed at least a dozen cases where officers abused access to Flock’s database, including one who ran his ex-girlfriend’s plate 69 times and searched her parents’ vehicles. Despite internal warnings, the behavior persisted, highlighting the risks of unchecked surveillance systems. Gamers face a new threat as malware spreads via Steam Workshop through Wallpaper Engine, a popular desktop customization tool. Attackers uploaded malicious "application wallpapers" executable files disguised as widgets that install backdoors, hijack Steam accounts, or mine cryptocurrency. While Steam removed the reported threats, some infected files had already been downloaded tens of thousands of times. Finally, Maine’s data breach portal was temporarily shut down after fake breach notices were filed. The state’s transparency law requires companies to report breaches within 30 days, but the system lacks verification, allowing fraudulent submissions. Two false reports claimed breaches at Discord and VRChat, both of which denied the incidents. The portal was disabled pending verification measures, leaving the motive behind the fake filings unclear whether mischief or an attempt to spread misinformation.

Flock Safety ALPR Breach Exposes California License Plate Data to Out-of-State Agencies A security lapse in Flock Safety’s automated license plate reader (ALPR) system has raised concerns over compliance with California’s strict privacy laws. The breach, disclosed by the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office (VCSO) on February 27, allowed federal and out-of-state law enforcement agencies to access local ALPR data despite state prohibitions on such sharing. The VCSO, which serves unincorporated areas and contracting cities like Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley, reported that a vendor error reactivated the "national lookup" feature in early 2025, enabling unauthorized queries. Between February 19 and March 19, 2025, external agencies conducted over 364,000 searches of Ventura County’s ALPR data, with 299 queries explicitly linked to immigration enforcement violating California’s restrictions on sharing data for such purposes. The Oxnard Police Department (OPD) also suspended its ALPR use after an audit revealed the same issue. Both agencies had previously disabled the national lookup feature in 2023 to comply with state law, but Flock’s system error reactivated it without their knowledge. Flock Safety, which provides fixed-position ALPRs to multiple California jurisdictions, attributed the breach to a system change in March 2024 that inadvertently reintroduced the feature. The company has since implemented internal safeguards, while the VCSO has added daily audits to monitor system settings and access logs. The incident underscores ongoing tensions between law enforcement technology and privacy regulations, particularly in states with strict data-sharing restrictions.

Mountain View Ends Flock Safety Contract After Unauthorized Data Access by Federal, State Agencies On February 24, the Mountain View City Council unanimously voted to terminate its contract with Flock Safety, a provider of automated license plate readers (ALPRs), following revelations that city camera data had been accessed by federal and state agencies without permission. The decision came after months of scrutiny and public pressure, with residents from Mountain View and neighboring cities urging the council to reject Flock’s system and any replacements. The controversy began on February 2, when Mountain View Police Chief Mike Canfield announced the shutdown of the city’s 30 Flock cameras, citing a loss of confidence in the vendor due to undisclosed data breaches. Two major incidents were uncovered. Between August and November 2024, shortly after the first camera was installed, a "national lookup" setting was activated without the city’s knowledge, allowing federal agencies including the ATF (Kentucky and Tennessee offices) and Air Force bases in Virginia and Ohio to search the data. While U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was not involved, the access violated California’s ban on sharing ALPR data with federal agencies or out-of-state entities. Flock Safety later disabled the national lookup feature for all California agencies in March 2025 but could not explain how the setting was enabled or disabled. A second breach occurred when a "statewide lookup" feature was turned on in August 2024, granting other California agencies access to Mountain View’s license plate data without the required city approval. The issue was discovered in January 2026 and promptly disabled. Chief Canfield stated that neither the statewide nor nationwide lookup tools were ever disclosed during Flock’s onboarding process. Despite the breaches, the system proved operationally effective. Over its duration, the ALPR program assisted in 87 commercial burglaries, 65 car break-ins, and 42 residential burglaries, leading to the identification or arrest of 41 suspects. It also aided in high-profile cases, including a domestic violence-carjacking arrest in San Francisco and the rescue of a kidnapping victim in San Jose. The city spent $154,650 on the program. Flock Safety maintained that its clients retain control over system settings, though the city’s investigation found no evidence of intentional misuse. The termination of the contract marks the end of Mountain View’s pilot program, leaving the future of ALPR use in the city uncertain.

A data breach in Flock Safety’s camera software—widely deployed by law enforcement—resulted in unauthorized sharing of license plate and vehicle imagery with federal immigration agencies through pilot programs. While the breach did not affect the Normal Police Department (Central Illinois), which adheres to the Illinois Trust Act (prohibiting non-criminal data sharing), other participating agencies inadvertently exposed data intended for combating human trafficking and fentanyl distribution to immigration enforcement. The leak stemmed from lack of access protocols in Flock Safety’s system, prompting the company to pause all federal data-sharing pilots.The compromised data includes license plate records and vehicle images, collected en masse by police departments. Although no direct financial or identity theft was reported, the breach raises concerns over privacy violations, misuse of surveillance data, and potential targeting of undocumented individuals. Flock Safety’s CEO acknowledged systemic gaps, while affected agencies face scrutiny over compliance with data-sharing laws. Periodic audits by departments like Normal PD aim to mitigate risks, but the incident highlights vulnerabilities in third-party law enforcement tech partnerships and the unintended repurposing of surveillance data for immigration enforcement.

Flock ALPR Data Leak Exposes Law Enforcement Search Queries in Search Engines Privacy advocates and 404 Media uncovered a data exposure involving Flock Safety, a company specializing in automatic license plate readers (ALPRs), revealing sensitive law enforcement search details in public search engine results. The incident highlights an unusual breach where surveillance data was inadvertently indexed by platforms like DuckDuckGo and Bing. In May, the NoCo Privacy Coalition a Northern Colorado-based activist group shared findings with 404 Media, demonstrating that search engine URLs contained exposed data, including license plate numbers, vehicle details (make, model, color), search reasons (e.g., "GTA" for grand theft auto, "Investigation"), case numbers, and date ranges. Some results also referenced identifiers like "window stickers" or "top rack." Flock, which operates thousands of ALPR cameras nationwide, confirmed the issue in a statement, clarifying that the exposed data consisted of search query fragments rather than full search results or underlying law enforcement records. The company estimated around 70 affected queries, dating from 2024 to 2025, and stated it was working with search engines to remove cached content. A spokesperson emphasized that protecting customer data remains a priority and that the company is investigating further. The leak underscores ongoing privacy concerns surrounding Flock’s technology, which captures and stores vehicle data often without a warrant before making it accessible to law enforcement. The controversy has led some communities to ban or restrict the use of Flock cameras amid debates over surveillance and civil liberties.

Flock Safety's AI-powered gunshot detection technology implemented in San Jose has been reported to yield a high rate of false positives, incorrectly flagging sounds such as fireworks or cars backfiring as gunfire. Initially, only 50 percent of the detected incidents were confirmed as gunshots. After recalibration, accuracy improved, suggesting that such systems may not be as reliable as claimed. The system's potential to dispatch police to non-threatening situations raises concerns, especially in communities of color, about the risks of unnecessary police confrontations.