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September 17, 2026
NYPD Ran 1,710 Flock Searches Despite Publicly Denying Contract
Reasons for Searches Not Documented in Most Instances
S.T.O.P. and LatinoJustice PRLDEF Demand Records Related to Their Findings
New York, NY— Today the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (“S.T.O.P.”) and LatinoJustice PRLDEF filed a public information request demanding that the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”) disclose the extent of its previously unacknowledged relationship with Flock.
Flock maintains a nationwide database of license plate readers that has been subject to abuse by law enforcement and represents an enormous invasion of privacy even when used as intended.
To date, the NYPD has publicly denied having a contract with Flock. Instead, it has only admitted that a “limited number of authorized NYPD personnel can access a national commercial LPR [license plate reader] data repository.” Records that S.T.O.P. obtained from the national database “Have I Been Flocked?” show that NYPD officers conducted 1,710 searches between March 2023 and December 2025, according to the most recent data available.
The data reveal the same reporting failures that other disclosures of Flock data have shown. Many entries do not provide any information about why the search took place. In nearly a thousand NYPD searches, the reason field is blank, boilerplate (“investigation,” “wanted person,” “inquiry”), gibberish (“234234,” “dd”), or contains only the plate that was searched.
Other entries limit case-specific information to a general description of a criminal offense (“grand larceny (gla),” “homicide,” “burglary”) or to the requesting agency (including 131 requests from the Queens District Attorney (“qcda,” “QCDA”)).
Because the NYPD has never acknowledged using Flock and has publicly stated it has no contract with Flock, LatinoJustice PRLDEF and S.T.O.P. have submitted a Freedom of Information Law request seeking the following information:
- Audit logs documenting NYPD searches of Flock’s license plate reader database.
- Any communications or contracts with Flock, including agreements to use the service through another agency’s contract.
- All materials used to train officers on Flock.
- Any rules on the use of Flock, including any rules regarding standards for conducting a search and documenting the search in the audit log.
- Any rules regarding the auditing or review of Flock audit logs by supervising officers.
- The name, rank, shield, and command of every officer who has been licensed to use Flock.
- Documentation of any funds paid to Flock.
“The NYPD told the public it had no Flock contract, but left out the part where its officers used Flock for years, and possibly continue to do so,” said Surveillance Technology Oversight Project Research Director Eleni Manis. “We’re demanding that the NYPD explain how it tracks New Yorkers on the road.”
According to Andrew Case, supervising attorney at LatinoJustice PRLDEF, “New Yorkers deserve to know how, when, where, and why they are being spied on by the police. We know that police officers throughout New York—especially Nassau County—share data with ICE. Seeing that NYPD officers have conducted hundreds of Flock searches and left no trace as to why the search was done leaves really serious questions as to how officers are using this technology.”
A copy of the information request is available here.
Under the Freedom of Information Law, the NYPD has five days to respond.
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About LatinoJustice PRLDEF
LatinoJustice PRLDEF works to create a more just society by using and challenging the rule of law to secure transformative, equitable and accessible justice, by empowering our community and by fostering leadership through advocacy and education. For over 50 years, LatinoJustice PRLDEF has acted as an advocate against injustices throughout the country. To learn more about LatinoJustice, visit www.LatinoJustice.org
About The Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (S.T.O.P.)
The Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (S.T.O.P.) is a non-profit advocacy organization and legal services provider. S.T.O.P. litigates and advocates for privacy, fighting excessive local and state-level surveillance. Our work highlights the discriminatory impact of surveillance on Muslim Americans, immigrants, and communities of color.
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