AI-rewritten: This is a summary of an article from Ars Technica, rewritten by AI (Qwen, running locally) to make it easier to read. The facts come from the original article – read it for the full story.

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A Texas city in North Richland Hills demanded $2.3 million before releasing public records on how police use the Flock camera system. Officials claimed searching terabytes of data would take 14 years at $15 per hour. Phil Mynona, representing the Texas Privacy Coalition, called this fee ludicrous and designed to stop searches. He has requested similar records from over 200 agencies across the US, finding fees range from free to $121,000.

Recent events highlight privacy risks associated with Flock. An ex-Texas cop, Zachary Anthony Klein, pled guilty to 100 felony counts of misuse in exchange for not facing stalking charges. His case was exposed after USA Today requested public records, leading to a probe and arrest. Disturbed by this, Texas Governor Greg Abbott halted Flock funding and stopped issuing permits. Meanwhile, the state Department of Public Safety sought help to withhold data from a request made by the Texas Tribune.

Legal challenges are emerging regarding these systems. A federal judge in Oklahoma ruled that searching a Flock database based on a license plate from another state constituted an unconstitutional search. Judge Sara Hill described the technology as indiscriminate mass surveillance requiring a warrant. While Flock expects this ruling to be overturned, it may influence future court decisions. Currently, over 100,000 warrantless searches of the system occur monthly, sometimes leading to wrongful arrests.

Only 59 agencies in Texas use transparency portals to share data, and just 16 share information with the public. Michael Soyfer, a lawyer at the Institute for Justice, warns that without stricter oversight, Flock may automate alerts used to flag suspicious movements, potentially aiding police practices like monitoring drivers crossing borders.