Cops Search Thousands of Flock Cameras for Reasons of ‘LMAO,’ ‘IDK,’ ‘Hehe,’ and ‘asdfg’

Searches of surveillance systems now require documented justification to prevent misuse.

An analysis by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) revealed that law enforcement officers frequently used Flock's automated license plate reader (ALPR) search system with frivolous or nonsensical reasons between 2023 and late 2025. Examples include "LMAO," "IDK," "Hehe," "asdfg," "idiot," and "WEIRD KID." These searches occurred across thousands of cameras in numerous jurisdictions. The EFF found that many police departments took little to no action against officers who submitted these questionable reasons, with some receiving only verbal counseling or having investigations lapse due to union contracts. Flock has since changed its system, replacing the free-text reason box with a drop-down list, which the EFF views as a reduction in transparency. The findings highlight concerns about the casual use and potential abuse of powerful surveillance tools by law enforcement.

The widespread use of trivial search justifications for ALPR data exposes a significant gap in oversight and accountability for law enforcement's use of powerful surveillance technology. This casual approach to accessing sensitive location data suggests that the systems are being treated more like personal search engines than tools for serious criminal investigations. The EFF's findings, coupled with Flock's move to a dropdown menu for search reasons, indicate a reactive rather than proactive approach to addressing potential privacy violations within the law enforcement community.

This pattern of misuse suggests that current auditing processes and internal controls are insufficient to deter or detect the abuse of ALPR systems. The lack of meaningful consequences for officers, even in cases of blatant disregard for proper procedure, fosters a culture where privacy concerns may be secondary to convenience or personal curiosity. As ALPR technology becomes more pervasive, the need for robust, transparent, and strictly enforced guidelines for its use is increasingly critical to safeguarding civil liberties.